Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson’s conversation with Jalen Johnson captured the tone of Atlanta’s 2025-26 season: a team that entered as an underdog, then forced the rest of the league to pay attention. Johnson said the Hawks took something lasting from the run, even after their first-round exit to the Knicks.
“I mean, we did a lot of things to build off of what we are as a group and an organization,” Johnson said. “I think it was a good, you know, building block for the direction that we’re going to head in. So, just continue to, like I said, man, just learn from this series, learn from everything about it, the good and the bad.”
Johnson’s numbers backed up the growth. In the regular season, he averaged 22.5 points, 10.3 rebounds and 7.9 assists across 72 games, then posted 19.5 points, 7.7 rebounds and 5.2 assists in six playoff games against New York.
Atlanta’s postseason showed both the upside and the gap. The Hawks pushed the Knicks to six games, won Game 2 in New York, and then were blown out 140-89 in Game 6 as the series closed.
Johnson said the quick turnaround from disappointment to development starts now. “Just continue to, you know, use this summer and… everybody has the same mindset of just trying to get better,” he said. “So, I’m excited about what’s to come.”
That mindset fit the Hawks’ season-long identity. The group played hard every night and leaned on Johnson as the engine, with his all-around production placing him among the league’s most productive young wings.
When asked about the emotional weight of the playoffs, Johnson said the experience still mattered. “I watched a lot. Definitely watched a lot. I don’t think there’s one specific one but… um… it was cool to be a part of playoff basketball,” he said.
For Atlanta, the next step is turning that experience into consistency. Johnson’s words made that clear: the season was not treated as a finish line, but as the first real proof of what the Hawks can become.
