Jonathan Kuminga has plenty to smile about following Hawks debut

Hawks forward Jonathan Kuminga wasted zero time in finding a way to impact his new team’s effort to pick up a second consecutive win.

In his first seven minutes played Tuesday, Kuminga helped the Hawks lead 35-20 at the end of the first quarter against the Wizards. He scored seven points, had two rebounds, four assists and one steal.

But that was only a teaser for the explosion of production he would provide. Though Kuminga had not played in a game since Jan. 22, the Hawks didn’t really ease him into the action by way of a minutes restriction.

Never for one minute, though, did Kuminga’s smile falter.

“I think just for people that really know me, all my teeth be out. So I’m always smiling,” Kuminga said after Tuesday’s game. “I stay laughing, every time. And just being around the guys, man, I’ve created a little bond with them since I got here.

“Good people, good crew. We all want to win. You know, winning comes with joy. So, as long as we all having fun out there and enjoying it, it’ll help us win games. So, I’m just excited to be out there with the guys.”

That excitement to return to the court showed with Kuminga’s hustle. The Congolese forward seemed to be everywhere on the court and provided the Hawks with disruptive defense.

“The things we talked about as a team, clearly it was a focal point for (us),” Hawks coach Quin Snyder said. “Playing with the pass, as you heard me say it since October, and (Kuminga) really demonstrated that right away, to the point where I told him, ‘It’s OK to shoot.’

“But he let himself get into the game and got connected with his teammates, and just let the game come to him, which I think that shows a lot of maturity on his part, and shows a lot of kind of how he feels about the group.”

Kuminga finished Tuesday’s outing with a season-high 27 points, missing only three of his 12 overall field-goal attempts. He had seven rebounds, four assists, and two steals. Kuminga played 24 minutes in Tuesday’s win and became the first player in the team’s history to score 25-plus points in fewer than 30 minutes.

“I think it’s very simple,” Kuminga said. “It’s basketball at the end of the day. Trying to be a student of the game as much as I can to kind of feed (my growth).

“Learning from other players here, from JJ (Jalen Johnson), Nickeil (Alexander-Walker) and just asking them questions because they’ve been playing for many (games together). So they know pretty much everything, just trying to pick up their brain so I can kind of keep up with them. So as I get out there with them, things just feel good and look normal.”

Kuminga did not get to log any minutes in his debut with Johnson, who left the game in the first quarter with a left hip flexor injury.

But he got significant run with several of the Hawks’ other cornerstone players in Alexander-Walker, Dyson Daniels, Onyeka Okongwu and Zaccharie Risacher.

Kuminga has flashed some chemistry with Daniels and Risacher, notching a couple of highlight plays. Within two minutes of his first stint, Risacher found Kuminga for a running dunk off a rebound. Kuminga returned the favor one minute later, finding Risacher for a running dunk with an outlet pass.

“I love, I love, I love Risa’s game,” Kuminga said. “I enjoy watching him every day, and I would say just giving him that confidence every other day, trying to uplift him every time, no matter the good or the bad, just try to be there and support him. Because you know, we need him every night. So just trying to be helpful as much as I can.”

The Hawks have plenty of flexibility when it comes to Kuminga’s future in Atlanta. They won’t make too much of one game, but the start feels like a positive one.