Last season was Jalen Johnson’s third with the Atlanta Hawks since cutting short his 2020-21 Duke basketball freshman campaign and coming off the board No. 20 overall at the NBA Draft. The 22-year-old forward nearly tripled his scoring average from his sophomore year in the league. And that impressive leap to 16.0 points per game — not to mention 8.7 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.2 steals — has led to a big payday.
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On Monday evening, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported that the Hawks have reinvested in the 6-foot-9, 220-pound Johnson to the tune of a five-year, $150 million rookie contract extension.
As Charania noted, the former five-star prep out of Wisconsin is one of only six NBA players in history to post season averages of at least 16 points, eight boards, three dimes, and one 3-point make per outing before turning 23 years old.
Jalen Johnson is the only NBA Blue Devil on the 2024-25 Hawks roster.
However, the Hawks’ head coach is a Duke basketball alum in late-1980s point guard and 1990s Blue Devil assistant Quin Snyder, entering his second full season at the helm in Atlanta.
The Atlanta Hawks, looking to bounce back from a 36-46 record in 2023-24, tip off their 2024-25 regular season at home versus the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday night.
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