Nickeil Alexander-Walker’s versatility connects the Hawks on both sides of the ball

New Hawks wing Nickeil Alexander-Walker adds so many skills to the team that it allows him to connect the roster together in a few different ways. But his life experiences have already shown him how he has been able to connect with his teammates off the court.

“I think it’s shown itself more in the locker room,” Alexander-Walker said. “It’s pretty cool, because I can feel my life’s journey kind of playing out within the locker room and being able to connect with guys.

“Like, me and KP (Kristaps Porzingis), we have a bond on cars, the classics and vintage stuff, talking that. Niko (Nikola Đurišić), my wife being Bosnian, and him being Serbian — just talking about the delicacies, the food, my trainer is Serbian. So, I grew up around a lot of like, played with Croatians, all that stuff, so the Balkan community, connecting with Niko there.”

Alexander-Walker has also connected with French speakers on the Hawks because of his time in Utah and Minnesota playing with Rudy Gobert. Second-year forward Zaccharie Risacher, who hails from France, as well as Mouhamed Gueye and Eli Ndiaye, who both have ties to Senegal, all speak French and Alexander-Walker has looked to improve his fluency by having conversations with them.

“My wife also speaks French, being from Quebec,” Alexander-Walker said. “So, trying to just work on my French talking with Zacch, Eli (and) Mo.

“It’s funny because, like, literally there’s something small that’s kind of played out in my life, that’s allowed me to connect with everybody. And it’s been cool, because I’ve been able to have little moments talking with everybody and being able to relate in some form of way, which is what’s really cool about basketball as well.”

Building those off-court connections will ultimately help Alexander-Walker’s chemistry with his teammates on the court. But he also understands that he needs to have patience with the process.

“The main thing is just taking it one day at a time,” Alexander-Walker said. “The main thing for me that’s been really helpful is just how everyone’s approach to the game has been. Everyone’s been taking it very serious for the collective unit of the team. Everyone’s bought into, like, what are we trying to accomplish. Who is our identity and let’s really work to that.

“That’s really (been an) emphasis that when we’re training, we’re not going through drills or whatever, and then when it’s live, we just go break into summertime ball. Everyone’s playing within the flow, so to speak. And it’s been easy, because I kind of just fall in line, and then from there, let the game come. And now enjoying it, having fun, and then keeping things simple.”

The 27-year-old has also leaned on his experience of playing against his new teammates to help himself figure out where he fits within the flow of the team’s system. Having played against new Hawks sharpshooter Luke Kennard for several years in the Western Conference, Alexander-Walker already knows some of the shooting guard’s tendencies.

The two will play plenty of minutes together off the bench, Alexander-Walker has tried to use his defensive knowledge of Kennard to his advantage.

“There’s one thing about Luke, he’s going to be reliable at what he does, and he’s done it for almost 10 years in this league,” Alexander-Walker said. “So, I think for me, it’s just about each day. I’ve tried to take a step back from trying to come in with this ‘I got to prove it was a good reason they got me here.’