Jalen Johnson enters the 2025-26 season looking to build on the career-best numbers he was averaging last year before he was shut down with a torn labrum in January.
ATLANTA (AP) — After a flurry of offseason moves and a reshaping of the Eastern Conference, the Atlanta Hawks are poised to be a factor this year.
And while four-time All-Star Trae Young is still the team’s fulcrum, a second All-Star will need to emerge if the Hawks are to fulfill expectations. Enter Jalen Johnson.
The Hawks’ 6-foot-9 forward is entering his fifth season out of Duke coming off a torn labrum in his left shoulder that required surgery last January and ended his season. He lasted only 36 games, but he continued his ascent with career highs in points (18.9), rebounds (10.0), steals (1.6), blocks (1.0) and minutes (35.7).
“I’m just excited for a basketball game,” Johnson said at the team’s practice facility Thursday. “It’s been a long time since January, so I’m excited to get out on the court, preseason, training camp. I’m excited to be full go and fully healthy going into the season.”
Johnson spent part of his summer training with LeBron James after he was cleared to resume basketball activities. He said his conditioning is up to par and he has worked most on his shooting in the offseason. The first few days of training camp have been spent getting acclimated to the new rotational pieces the Hawks have acquired, such as Kristaps Porziņģis, Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Luke Kennard.
And while Johnson is trying to fit in with them, Hawks coach Quin Snyder feels the newcomers will fit in nicely with Johnson.
“Other guys on the team benefit from Jalen because of his play-making ability,” Snyder said. “Jalen is such a good passer and willing passer that he’s ready to play-make even more. … (With the new lineup), he will be in spacing situations where he can just catch and shoot. We want him to do that, just to let it fly. We trust him in that regard.”
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Johnson shot 35.5% from 3-point range in 2023-24, but that number dipped to 31.2% last season. Should his outside shooting become more reliable, it will open up his ability to drive. Johnson is one of the Hawks’ best at getting out and finishing in transition, and has been since he came into the league.
Snyder said he has noticed in the early part of training camp that Johnson has been more focused on defensive details, which shows his maturation as a player. Johnson hasn’t been able to experience a full season in his two years as a starter. He played 56 games in 2023-24 because of ankle and wrist injuries, and then missed 46 games last season.
“The key for any young player in getting better is to embrace the things they need to work on, just to be painfully honest with yourself about how can I get better and then to work,” Snyder said. “He’s done a real good job in the portions of the season, early in the season that he did play, I think he’s been able to take that and really work on things and apply them.”
Snyder described Johnson as hungry to play and has hopes he will continue to progress and be a key component of the team this season.
“We’ve got a lot of things rolling in the right direction,” Johnson said. “We’re just looking to continue to build on arguably the best roster on paper that this team’s had in a couple of years.”
