Jalen Johnson wants to win.
When a player is set on making clear advancements in their game every season in order to strategically contribute to a successful nightly product, they have to look from within.
Johnson was spectacular last season. There's no doubt about it. The accolades prove it. All-Star. All-NBA. People around the league were clearly catching on to his growth. It became undeniable as the Hawks began to make some real noise in the competitive Eastern Conference.
No player is perfect, though. Everyone has their own shortcomings. For Johnson, last season, those inefficiencies came on the defensive end.
Johnson must find his defensive impact, but he'll have help along the way
When a player, particularly a star, has obvious limitations, organizations typically work around them. It's a worthy sacrifice for remarkable offensive output.
Take the recent iteration of the New York Knicks, for example. Is Jalen Brunson the prototypical Finals MVP-caliber guard? Not in the slightest.
New York understood they had a defensive liability leading the way, and they did exactly what smart franchises do. They surrounded him with a plethora of high-level, multi-positional defenders.
A championship followed. And while this theoretically could give the Hawks a blueprint on how to build a contender, it's a drastically different situation. Jalen Johnson, their franchise star, has all the tools to be a special defender in the NBA. Unlike Brunson.
In fact, just a few seasons ago, he was on the level of many of the league's best, most versatile defensive weapons.
There's often an unfair trade-off when a player explodes offensively. Hawks fans know it all too well, but if they've been a quality defender before, there's valid reason to believe they can become one again. The Knicks had to overcorrect. The Hawks didn't have to, but they did, leading many to believe Johnson can soon turn back into the complete player they all know he can be.
The new additions can help Johnson return to form defensively
It hasn't been a slow offseason of movement for the Atlanta Hawks.
President of Basketball Operations Onsi Saleh doesn't let fans rest, or get too attached to certain players.
He went out and brought in Lu Dort and Aaron Wiggins - two of Oklahoma City's most elite defensive players - adding to an already-impressive and improving unit.
With those two now in the fold, along with Dyson Daniels and Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Johnson shouldn't be tasked with too difficult of a nightly defensive assignment. But if he ever is, having these guys on the roster should make it a much easier time for him.
If this all comes to fruition, look out NBA.
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