Hawks veteran CJ McCollum looks forward to the year of growth ahead

The Hawks won 20 of their final 26 games of last season, despite having eight different players from when they began the season.

Atlanta Hawks guard CJ McCollum (3) and Atlanta Hawks forward Jalen Johnson (1) celebrate their 109-108 win against the New York Knicks in game 3 of the NBA first round playoffs at State Farm Arena, Thursday, April 23, 2026, in Atlanta. (Jason Getz/AJC)

By Lauren Williams

1 hour ago

After some roster turnover last season, the Hawks head into the new league year with some continuity.

They extended and promoted Onsi Saleh from general manager to president of basketball operations. They extended coach Quin Snyder to a multiyear contract and they re-signed some veteran free agents.

It gives them some room to fine-tune their chemistry with a full summer of offseason work and training camp.

“I’m just excited to be able to have a full training camp,” Hawks veteran CJ McCollum said. “Like I was traded in the middle of the season, so I’m excited about that. Excited about the growth and the potential that a lot of the young guys have, and the experiences that we were able to have this last season competing for a playoff spot, making the playoffs, and then playing against a really good team.

“It teaches you how to be better and make moments. It teaches you how to execute. Also teaches you how to prepare. So I’m really just excited about the opportunity to have some more growth moments together as a team.”

The Hawks won 20 of their final 26 games of the season, despite having eight different players on the roster from when they began the season.

Now, the Hawks will look to develop the rookies and continue to build on what they started.

Hawks rookie Kingston Flemings has talked about how much he wants to learn from McCollum. The Hawks veteran guard looks forward to imparting his knowledge.

“We had dinner the other night and he asked a lot of questions, and I have a lot of information,” McCollum said.

“There’s a lot of experiences that I’ve had, I think, could be helpful for him, and helping him adjust his body to the game, his mind to the game, how to prepare, how to make it through a long season, how to weather the storm, because ultimately you’re going to go through some ups and downs.”

McCollum, though, has confidence in the 19-year-old guard and said he has a bright future ahead.

“He approaches the game the right way,” McCollum said. “He’s got a lot of things you can’t teach: speed, point of pressure, great decision-making in terms of assist-to-turnover ratio, to get into the paint when he feels like it.

“So it’s just about continuing to learn and me trying to impart that knowledge on him, but also being an example that he can kind of follow in terms of how to prepare and be a professional.”