The Atlanta Hawks held their annual preseason media day yesterday, giving Quin Snyder and his players the opportunity to share their first on-the-record comments ahead of the 2025-26 season. With training
camp kicking off this week, here’s some of the top quotes from Monday’s media session.
Quin Snyder
On the new additions, and roster as a whole:
“Speaking specifically to some of our new guys, I think Nickeil gives us another player that’s really capable of defending at the point of attack which is really important. Kristaps’ versatility defensively, and Luke, you think of Luke because he shoots the ball so well, but he’s more than a shooter as they like to say.”
“I think all those guys love to play, you can throw Asa in that bucket too. It’s been fun to see his growth in a short period of time, and his enthusiasm and passion. I think what excites me about our whole group is that we have guys that our passionate and enthusiastic about doing the work, and that’s really what it’s going to take for us to get where we want to go.”
“Overarching with the roster, I think there’s a versatility. That’s something Onsi [Saleh] and I have talked about, himself and his group were able to achieve that in a way we haven’t before. That type of versatility, the balance I think is also something that’s significant. Those different qualities. I think the players that we have are excited about the group as a whole.”
On the defensive potential of the Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Dyson Daniels pairing:
“Not to diminish my enthusiasm about having those guys, but it’s still five guys on the court. On the best defenses, everybody’s defending and they’re collectively helping one another. Any time you improve, whether it’s Kristaps’ ability to protect the rim, you mentioned Nickeil and Dyson, I’m excited about that. I think what happens is like anything, players who are really good at something have the ability to raise everybody’s level, and that’s the way we need to approach having those skillsets. It’s not just ‘you stop your guy’, it’s about the Hawks getting stops.”
“Our ability to make plays and create havoc is tremendously important to what we do on the other end of the floor. Any team’s style of play should reflect their strengths and give them an opportunity to maximize their personnel.”
On expectations for Trae Young:
“We had a chance to sit down last week, and I want to set the bar for him high. When you have a player who has achieved as much as he has at such a young age, I think at times you’re looking for ways to get better.”
“I think the key word for Trae is ‘efficiency’, and for that to be the primary focus, whatever that looks like. If that looks like more of this, less of this, however that game evolves. I think what you’re going to see is Trae having to feel the game in a way to find the areas in a given game where he can contribute and be most efficient. There’s games where that’s going to mean scoring more, there’s games where he’s going to be passing more.”
“I think the constants are going to be him forcing the pace, and not just pushing the ball off the dribble, but passing ahead. He was one of the very best in the league, if not the best on passing ahead, so we’ve talked about doing that more. Different types of passes ahead, that’s something he enjoys doing. So helping us with our pace is a huge thing that comes every night, and again it might be different how he does that.”
“The other thing he’s got to do every night is be efficient defensively. People attack him because they know it has an impact on him offensively, they try to fatigue him and when you have a player that is as good on the ball as Dyson, they try to put Trae on the ball. It’s basic logic. So Trae understanding that and taking pride in what his job is on the defensive end, that leads to team efficiency on the defensive end.“
He wants to get better every year, I think having some other players that really can mesh with him, his ability to help pull that group together that’s going to involve… the word I like to use with Trae all the time is evolution, and to me his leadership is about him being efficient and doing the things on the court that help our team win. You prepare off the court for those moments, but I think his efficiency on the court, and him embracing that raises everybody’s level.
On Jalen Johnson:
“Jalen is as excited as anybody to get going, he has worked unbelievably hard to come back from some injury situations that I know were frustrating for him because he loves to play. But I also think that he’s another guy that we have to be patient with. Jalen is – young is a relative concept on our team, but I’d throw Jalen in the young bucket and I think he understands that. But you can still be good when you’re young, and he’s that.”
“I think like some of our other guys, the key for Jalen is to be efficient. Because of his versatility, he can impact the game in a lot of ways. He’s an elite defensive rebounder, so when he grabs it off the rim and pushes it, and either attacks the rim or passes it, it’s pretty hard to guard. But I want him to do more than that, he wants to do more than that, his teammates want him to do more than that, we have a lot of guys that can do more, but we have to be focused on doing more collectively. Everyone can’t ‘do more’ all at once. We have to read the game, and that’s where our efficiency comes from. Similar to our team, you always want more, but that can’t be your focus, whether that be your individual production or anything external we need to keep our focus, by placing it in the place that gives us the greatest probability for success.”
On the areas of Indiana’s style of play from last season that he’d like to apply to this year’s group:
“I think we were third in pace last year. I think we led the league in passes ahead, [though] we didn’t convert as many. I also think Indiana really took a step when you saw their defense take a step. A lot of respect for Rick, he’s a friend. We’ve been continuing to work on playing random basketball for lack of a better word, read-based basketball, I think that’s what we do. Our roster is beginning to formulate in a way that I think we’re more capable of doing that.”
“It goes to as a coach how you feel your team should have the most success playing a certain way. That’s been an evolution for a lot of guys, for Trae in particular. He’s playing more pick and roll with smalls, he’s playing with more pace, there’s less stray pick and rolls with the five, there’s more cutting. That kind of fits who we are, but that’s a reflection of the game changing. A lot of those things are consistent, and I think being able to be disruptive defensively fits with that.”
“You want to be who you are, but [be] who you can be. That sounds too philosophical but some of those habits, continuity helps that and if you look at all the numbers that’s what it says. We were last in the league in isolation. I don’t think that’s always the most effective way for our team to play.”
“We have a balanced group and for us to connect collectively, and be comfortable with the final score, not the box score is the key. No matter how unselfish you may be individually, that’s still a hard thing. They’re not posting offensive efficiency in the box score, you don’t pull that up online, you pull up somebody’s bottom line numbers. So that’s on you guys [the media] to capture that part of the game, and that’s the key for us, that’s where our progression lies. IT’s about being efficient with what we do and becoming better and better at it.”
“We want the whole to be greater than the sum of it’s parts and that requires a lot of commitment and a lot of sacrifice in what is a league and world of individual achievement. But when you see it in the end, if you can hang onto it, winning feels a lot better to everybody and it’s something you get to share, but it’s hard, and I don’t think we should run from the fact that it’s hard, and it’s a journey as well.”
Trae Young
On his conversations with Coach Snyder and the word “efficiency”:
“Yeah, I think I was the first one to bring up efficiency in our conversation, just because that’s what I want to do. As high as he sets the bar for me, I want to set it even higher.”
“For me I’m excited about this team, this group. So for me, the leadership part is just taking it one day at a time. Obviously we’ve got a lot of new guys on our team that can bring a different type of experience to our team, and so for me to be the type of leader I want to be… we’re still a young team, I think we’re one of the youngest teams in the league. So we got a long ways to go as far as making sure we’re together on the same page and all that stuff. That’s a day by day step and that’s one of the leadership things he talked to me about, not looking too far ahead, making sure I’m present with our team and making sure we’re focused each day to take care of the business for the next one.”
On how the new additions will help him on the court:
“Every one of them brings different tools to our team. I think a lot of people understand what Luke brings, they see he can shoot the ball really well, but I can see him being an underrated passer, a high IQ guy. I think IQ is an underrated skill in this league that a lot of players don’t have, and Luke brings that. Then Nickeil, being the type of role player he’s been so far in his career, I think he can take another step, offensively he can bring a lot to the table for us, and then we know what he can do defensively. Then obviously KP, his ability to space the floor, his defensive presence at the basket. When you go to the rim and see a 7’2” guy standing there, you’re going to have to shoot different types of shots, and then offensively you gotta guard him on the three, so that allows me to get by my defender and if it draws other defenders in then I have shooters around me that can make shots, so it’s going to be fun, we don’t know what it’s going to look like right now but in my mind it looks pretty good.”
On finding the balance between creating for guys that need help creating for themselves vs. potentially deferring to players like Kristaps Porzingis and Jalen Johnson:
“Yeah, I think you’ll be able to see another element of my game that you haven’t been able to see. Lotta people like to say, ‘Trae can’t play with this person or this person because he loves the ball in his hand… c’mon man. You’ll be able to see, like I’ve got a guy in KP who draws double teams, Jalen – if he’s healthy – you’ve seen what we’ve done together, he’s back now. So there’s elements of my game you probably haven’t seen yet. Adding guys that we’ve added this summer will allow me to play even more off the ball, so I’m excited about it and I’m more ready to get it going than anything.”
On whether he felt any disappointment about not getting an extension done this offseason:
“Um… I don’t know about the word disappointment. I mean, maybe. For me, I’m so focused, I’m more happy about the team we got heading into the season. For me, I’m blessed bro, I wasn’t stressing about anything, if something happened it happened, if it didn’t, I still got time. Obviously everybody knows what my situation is going into the future so for me, I’m focused on this team, I’m focused on right now, I’m blessed, I’ve got a great team going into the season – one that I mean you can’t really say I’ve had so I’m even more excited about that. Who knows what the future is for me, but right now I’m here, I’m present, like me and coach have been talking about, so I’m excited about it and ready to go.”
Jalen Johnson
On the rehab process after shoulder surgery:
“Just like any surgery, you gotta build strength back so that’s what the majority of this summer was, getting my range back and stuff like that. It was a slow process, but it allowed me to take a step back and really just take it day by day.”
On what feels different about this group ahead of the new season:
“The thing I’ve noticed most is that everybody’s hungry, everybody came in early this year, everybody understands that we don’t want to be in any tough position, we just want to continue to work every day and get better. Everybody’s had that mindset. It’s been refreshing to see that, refreshing to see the new guys come in with that mindset, so I think it’ll be easy.”
On Trae Young calling him a future All-Star on his podcast:
“I mean Trae’s awesome man, he shows love to all the guys, not just myself. When he’s talking on his podcast, he shows love to a lot of his teammates, that’s what he does. It’s great hearing that, but obviously a lot of work [left] to even get there.”
On whether the moves the team made during the offseason have brought them closer to contention:
“We just gotta keep getting better. We can’t put expectations out now before the season even starts. We gotta take it game by game, day by day, and just stay with that mindset. It’s easy in this league to look too far ahead, or get stuck on a game in the past, but as a group we just want to focus on the now, focus on the moment, and continue to work on what we need to get better at.”
Kristaps Porzingis
On how his experience in the league can help this young Hawks roster:
“I will see what I can bring, you know, it’s hard to say right now, but I look forward to enhancing all these guys and being a selfless teammate. I want the best for these young players. They’ve been improving each season, it’s an exciting team. Playing for Coach Quin, I’ve appreciated him from afar for a long time and now to play for him it’s a great honor for me so I look forward to enhancing all these young guys and to help them in whatever way I can.”
On how his game can help bring out the best in Trae Young:
“It’s going to be a process. Trae is already a complete player, there’s not many guys that have that kind of offensive talent that he does, at his height to be able to be this effective and create not only assists, but I think he’s the best in the league at creating potential assists, it’s just going to be a matter of us also shooting a high percentage from his passes, so that’s a big part of it, to make him look even better than he has. I think he’s going to be super fun to play with. Seeing how many lobs he throws, and how he finds some passes that a regular eye don’t even see, so it’s going to be exciting.”
Biggest lesson he’s learned from his time in the NBA:
“It takes a whole team, nobody can do it by themselves. It sounds simple but it’s true, even in Boston, we had to do it together. Everybody had to lean on each other, somebody has a bad game, somebody else has to step up, and it’s like this: every great team has people that are ready to step up when the moment calls. And I think this team has the talent, a lot of hungry young guys, Trae who has good experience, and now myself. Coming into this young group, I think I can just elevate all these guys, and bring even more gun powder to this team.”
On fitting in with Atlanta’s fast-paced offense:
“I think it’s going to be pretty simple. That’s kind’ve what we were trying to emphasize in Boston also a bit more. Sometimes we slowed down, but we were the best when we were faster. The more we ran, the more we created stuff in transition at least from a feel stand-point, and also numbers wise I think we were better. So it has to be an emphasis and I think I’m going to add to that.”
“Honestly, I like to do that, I like to create transition mismatches, or even if it’s not a mismatch, just drawing some fouls in the post, I’m pretty good at getting those calls, shooting my transition threes and stuff, so there’s going to be new dimensions I can unlock for this team.”
Dyson Daniels
On the areas of his game he was able to work on this summer:
“This summer was really fun for me because my first two summers I had a World Cup and an Olympics, so I didn’t really get time off to work on my game, and this summer I was able to work with my trainer, work on my game.”
“I was able to make improvements in a lot of areas of my game. I worked a lot on my midrange, being able to get to spots, different pickups, different footwork, getting to shots, trying to develop that offensive bag, that’s been the main focus for me this summer. My defense is always going to be my backbone, that’s what’s got me to where I am today, so just building [out] my offensive game.”
“We’ve got a great team, we’re very deep this year so just trying to fit into my role better and play to the best of my ability.”
On what it was specifically about the Atlanta Hawks organization that helped him develop as a player last season:
“Coach Q is huge for me, coming into last year, he gave me so much confidence in myself, he gave me that starting role, he wanted me to go out there and just be myself, he’s never told me not to shoot a shot, he’s never told me not to go out there and make a play, he just gives me so much confidence in myself.”
“As well as Coach Q, it was also just about me and my mindset, knowing that I wasn’t happy with my first two years in New Orleans. I wasn’t myself, I wasn’t the aggressive self I could’ve been, I felt like I had taken a step back. So if I wanted to change my career around and go out there and be that impact player I know I could be, it was about going out there and just playing free, not being afraid of anyone, and that’s what I did.”
“I’m looking to build on that every year, I know what it takes now, and this organization’s been great, my teammates have been great, they’ve given me so much confidence, the front office, everyone’s easy to talk to in this organization. It just feels like home. You come in every day, you want to be there, you want to work, you want to stay around, you want to talk to people, and when you’re in that sort of environment it makes it a lot easier.”
Nickeil Alexander-Walker
On why he joined the Hawks in free agency this past summer:
“Honestly, had a few good talks with Trae, thinking about it, sitting down with my agents, some prayers. All in all I felt the situation at hand with the trade they made for KP. T-Mann [Terrance Mann] had left, so I looked at it as there’s room in my role where I could come in and be a defender. When Trae needs one, come in and run the show, get guys involved, playmaker, on ball, off ball, versatility has been my thing.”
“But I also wanted to be in an area where I can contribute to winning, and grow in a role where as a player I can have more opportunity on and off the ball, defensively and offensively as well, to be a leader on both sides, and it felt like Atlanta just ticked every box for me.”
On whether playing with Dyson Daniels can help him reach another level on the defensive end:
“100%, at Dyson’s age, we’ve seen what opportunity can do for him and how he flourished with that opportunity. For me, I can learn from anybody and with the success he’s had defensively, and some of the instincts he has in terms of getting steals. For me, I pride myself on just on-ball defense, getting stops and making things difficult. Dyson’s able to turn people over at a high rate, and that’s something I can definitely add to my game. Whether that’s blocking shots, reading things, the way he sees it, his approach to defense, I respect it.”
On what he feels are fair expectations for the team this season:
“I think what’s fair is to come out to compete every night, to focus on one day at a time. I think what makes expectations and goals attainable is just going to be the approach that we have. I think everybody’s focused on individually and collectively getting better. So as long as we stay along those lines, you kind’ve stumble into success because you’re living a life that leads you to it.”
“When I look at how I got here, it was from working hard, staying faithful to the grind, through the ups and downs, and eventually it pays off. And so for us to focus on where we want to get to and actually obtaining those things, and whatever the city may feel because we got a different roster and a lot of great guys on this team, I think we got to block out all the noise and take it one day at a time. You look too far ahead and you trip, you look too far back and you walk into something, so it’s just about what’s in front of us.”
Zaccharie Risacher
On his on-court goals for his second season in the league:
“I just want to get better, I’ve worked a lot on my game during the summer, so my goal is to be efficient, and as soon as I step on the court be able to be the best version of myself, so we can win games, that’s it.”
“I’ve worked a lot on my game, shooting, ball handling, so I’m ready to just do whatever it takes to win games. My main strength is I’m a versatile player, so I’m ready to be whatever it takes.”
On his shot release looking quicker during EuroBasket:
“I think having a quick release is really helpful especially in the NBA where everything is super fast. But honestly I was working on the fundamentals, the basics, and I felt like as soon as you get that perfectly, it comes naturally, and like being quicker and quicker is just a matter of time, but you gotta have that base first so I was really working on that. And now after [all those] reps I got faster, and now I think I have a pretty quick release so that’s good. Just gotta keep the work going.”
On whether having more time this offseason helped him mentally:
“I really enjoyed the off-season because as you said I had more time to focus on myself, mentally and physically. Like I said, I tried to work on my game and become a better athlete too. Last offseason, I was in a rush all the time with getting drafted, summer league, training camp, everything went super fast. And now, I sort of felt like I have more time to recover and also get ready for the new season. So I’m really excited about it, and I feel like that’s going to be an advantage for me.”
Onyeka Okongwu
On his fit with Kristaps Porzingis:
“He’s been in the league for a while. Hell of a player. Hell of a talent. Call him the unicorn. He can kill defenses inside and out. I’ll get to try to feel his game out more during training camp, and see how I can help him and how he can help me.”
On what his role will be on the team this season:
“I feel like I’ll play a big part of what we’re going to do. I don’t know what that’s going to be yet specifically, but whatever that is I’m going to be at my best at all times.”
Biggest lesson he’s learned from his time in the NBA:
“Patience. It’s a long season. 82 games. I’ve dealt with coaching changes, roster changes, health, I’ve been through it all so overall, I just gotta be patient with myself, be patient with whatever the situation is, and always see the best in any situation.”
Luke Kennard
On what Hawks’ fans can expect from him as a playmaker:
“Just the confidence with the ball in my hands. Each team I’ve been on, I’ve had opportunities to have the ball in my hands at certain times, whether that was because of injuries or anything like that, so I’m definitely confident with the ball in my hands.”
“I know coming in here playing with guys that can really pass the ball and control the offense, I do want to be that knockdown shooter for this team but at the same time, showcasing what I can do with the ball making plays. Just helping control the offense a little bit, so I’m excited about it, I’m excited to play with this group of guys and it should be fun.”
On playing alongside Trae:
“I’m really looking forward to it. Obviously, that was one of the big reasons why I wanted to come here. To play with him, this group, play for coach. I know how they play, they play winning basketball. Obviously when you have the best passer on your team, you can’t really pass up an opportunity to play with him. I’m excited about it. I know he’s excited about it, I’ve talked to him a little bit. We’re ready to get training camp going, get practice going, and start developing that connection.”
Mouhamed Gueye
On what he’ll be able to learn from Kristaps Porzingis:
“Yes sir. I think I’m going to be able to learn a lot, especially spacing the floor. He’s one of the best to ever do it in the league. He’s a champ. He just came back from the Euro. So I’m just going to be a sponge, be next to him, probably annoying him a couple times, but I’m going to learn.”
On supporting Dyson Daniels by wearing his clothing brand, VOUSETI:
“Honestly if it wasn’t comfortable I wouldn’t wear it. His clothes are really nice, I would say it’s one of my favorite brands now. I’m just trying to be a good guy.”
Vit Krejci
On the areas he’d like to improve this season:
“Just being more comfortable on offense, being more comfortable handling the ball, and be more comfortable with making decisions. This is the role I’m trying to be comfortable in now. Just trying to be the best player I can be, in the role that the team needs me to be in.”
On his good play rubbing off on the rest of the team:
“Yeah I play with a lot of emotions. I love basketball so when I get hot, when things go well, I play with that passion and I think for us when we hit those rough patches which every team does in a year, I think it’s going to be important for us to remember that we love playing basketball, we want to be competitive, and what our goal is. I think that’s going to be the next step in our season.”
Keaton Wallace
On his secret handshake with Quin Snyder:
“We got a handshake now, that’s my dog. Throughout the whole summer, we’ve been in communication, just sharing different ideas, but that’s my dog. Coach Quin, he a real one.”
Asa Newell
On preparing for his rookie season:
“From summer league to now, it’s just really been focusing on my three-point shoot, put on some size, gained some weight. Over the past couple weeks, I’ve just been in the weight room, eating the great food the chefs got – they got us good in the practice facility and everything.”
“Also just understanding the game, understanding the offense, getting in with the coaching staff, seeing what I need to do to get on the floor. It’s going to be defense, reading closeouts, being able to finish plays that Trae and other guys can create.”
On the NBA player he’s most excited to share the floor with:
“Growing up I was a Hawks fan, you know over the years Trae Young has been going crazy in the city so just playing with him, being able to help finish plays, catching lobs from him.”
