Age: 23 years previous
2024-2025 Position: For 4 years (earlier than the harm)
Statistics: 18.9 factors per match, 10 rebounds, 5 assists, 1.0 blocks, 1.6 interceptions out of fifty / 31.2 / 74.6 to movie (35.7 minutes per match in 36 video games performed this season)
Again in 2025-26: Sure
As soon as once more, Jalen Johnson did one other step in his improvement earlier than his season was interrupted as a result of an extended -term harm.
After final season, Johnson obtained the excitement as a reliable candidate for essentially the most improved participant 2024-25. In the course of the 56 video games he performed, he collected on common 16 factors, 8.7 rebounds and three.6 assists per sport on 51.1 / 35.5 / 72.8 for capturing. Every statistical class, aside from its 3p%, has leaped in entrance this season and the superior figures paint a superb picture of the rationale why it’s so invaluable for Hawks.
In assault, he linked to a profession summit of 72% of his makes an attempt on the edge (88th centile). It was the second greatest proportion of Hawks final season and the subsequent leaving was Caris Lever (67%). Its% TS dropped from 58.4% to 56.9%, however its AST% made a large leap of 15.4% to twenty.4%. Other than Trae Younger, there isn’t any participant on the Hawks together with his talents as a ball sleight. His% TOV reached 15.1% this season, however it additionally had the very best within the USG% of his profession at 22.5%. Johnson additionally does tons of labor on offensive glass – he had a% OREB of 4.9% (74th centile). Even when it was solely 35 video games, there have been tons of encouragement of the indicators of Johnson’s development as an offensive contributor. There isn’t any motive to assume that it can’t be a second excessive -level possibility for Atlanta within the coming seasons.
The Hawks have sorely missed Johnson’s defensive contributions. He achieved a summit of 10.8 defensive rebounds per match and managed 21% of the opponent’s missed targets. To place this in perspective, he completed within the one centesimal centile as a defensive rebounder. The scale of the pattern could be very small, however Johnson is without doubt one of the greatest within the league to finish the possessions for the opponents. He’s additionally a disciplined defender, completed within the 96th centile for defensive errors dedicated. It’s earlier than mentioning how good it’s as a hearth blocker, displaying a BLK% of 1.4% (eighty fifth centile). He had a profession defensive field greater than 1.8 and his absence of programming left the Hawks extraordinarily more likely to be exhibited by star gamers with a dimension.
For instance how vital it’s for Atlanta’s success, the Hawks had a file of 22-19 earlier than his harm. The Hawks completed with a 40-42 file, going 18-23 of their matches with out him. It additionally arose in superior measurements. The Hawks had been 5.6 factors higher with him on the sector, which is underway on the 82nd centile in comparison with the remainder of the league. As well as, Johnson additionally performs nicely with Trae Younger. Its TS% goes from 49.4% with out younger to 60.2% with younger folks largely as a result of Younger prepares it nicely underneath the basket and that Johnson has the abilities essential to benefit from it. As well as, it removes Younger’s strain as a ball wounder. The defenses rushed to Younger this season within the part and that made the Hawks offensive very predictable.
Sooner or later, Johnson simply wants to remain wholesome. He can most likely use extra enchancment as a 3 -point shooter and his stage of protection focus could possibly be extra constant, however these are changes in his sport that ought to emerge over time. Realisticly, his absence on the finish of the season consistently limits the Hawks ceiling. His accidents are usually not essentially revealing of something degenerative, however it’s tough to disregard the better development of being unavailable in April. If he can stay wholesome for greater than 65 video games, he ought to anticipate him to indicate up for a headache of the celebrities like among the best younger attackers of the Jap Convention.
It was one other constructive season for the departure energy of the Hawks and if it might probably stay wholesome, extra vital issues are on the horizon in 2025-2026.
International grade: B
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