2026-27 Atlanta Hawks Season Guide: Roster, Schedule, Storylines, and Key Dates

The 2026-2027 NBA season is right around the corner.

Training camp begins in less than two weeks for the Atlanta Hawks, and the Hawks are going to be out to prove that last season was not a fluke. The Eastern Conference has gotten a lot more competitive this offseason, and making the playoffs is not going to be easy, but this team is talented, deep, and has a chip on their shoulder after the embarrassing loss to the Knicks in game six of the first round.

Below, you'll find the complete guide for the upcoming Atlanta Hawks season, including the roster, schedule, biggest storylines, and key dates for the upcoming season.

Current Roster

CJ McCollum Atlanta Hawk — Apr 28, 2026; New York, New York, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard CJ McCollum (3) controls the ball against New York Knicks guard Jose Alvarado (5) during the second quarter of game five of the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Keep in mind when looking at the current roster for the Hawks, they are at 16 players and must waive/trade at least one player to get to the regular season roster limit. Last week, the Hawks waived Devin Carter, getting them down to 16 players. Keep an eye on any roster movement for Atlanta, with Corey Kispert, Mouhamed Gueye, Buddy Hield, and Ryan Nembhard the most likely candidates to be moved.

Player	Position	Salary
Jalen Johnson	PF	$30,000,000
Dyson Daniels	G/F	$25,000,000
CJ McCollum	G	$21,000,000
Luguentz Dort	G/F	$17,722,222
Onyeka Okongwu	C	$16,100,000
Nickeil Alexander-Walker	G	$14,403,710
Jock Landale	C	$14,100,000
Corey Kispert	SF	$13,975,000
Buddy Hield	G	$9,658,536
Aaron Wiggins	G/F	$9,028,038
Kingston Flemings	PG	$7,348,680
Zuby Ejiofor	PF/C	$3,453,360
Asa Newell	PF	$3,399,480
Mouhamed Gueye	PF	$2,406,205
Ryan Nembhard	PG	$2,150,917
Henri Veesaar	C	$1,357,763

As is, the Hawks are currently $3,819,114 below the luxury tax, $11,556,747 away from the first apron, and $24,227,747 away from the second apron. Because they used a previous year's trade exception to acquire Aaron Wiggins earlier in the summer, Atlanta is hard-capped at the first apron for the season.

Schedule

1. Wed 10/21/26 at Orlando
2. Fri 10/23/26 at Charlotte
3. Sat 10/24/26 vs Houston
4. Mon 10/26/26 at Houston
5. Wed 10/28/26 Miami
6. Thu 10/29/26 vs Cleveland
7. Sat 10/31/26 at New Orleans
8. Mon 11/2/26 at Indiana
9. Wed 11/4/26 at Washington
10. Fri 11/6/26 vs Washington
11. Sat 11/7/26- vs Brooklyn
12. Mon 11/9/26- vs LA Lakers
13. Fri 11/13/26 at Chicago
14. Sun 11/15/26 at Milwaukee
15. Wed 11/18/26 at Oklahoma City
16. Fri 11/20/26 Charlotte
17. Sun 11/22/26 Detroit
18. Fri 11/27/26 at Boston
19. Sun 11/29/26 at New York
20. Tue 12/1/26 at Miami
21. Thu 12/3/26- vs Indiana
24. Sat 12/12/26 at Portland
25. Mon 12/14/26 at Phoenix
26. Thu 12/17/26 at Denver
27. Sat 12/19/26- vs Orlando
28. Sun 12/20/26- vs Oklahoma City
29. Wed 12/23/26- vs Detroit
30. Sat.12/26/26- vs Charlotte
31. Sun. 12/27/26 at San Antonio
32. Tue. 12/29/26- vs Chicago
33. Thu. 12/31/26- vs Milwaukee
34. Sat. 1/2/27- vs Dallas
35. Mon. 1/4/27 at Philadelphia
36. Tue. 1/5/27 at Charlotte
37. Thu 1/7/27- vs Indiana
38. Sun 1/10/27 vs San Antonio
39. Mon 1/11/27 at Washington
40. Wed 1/13/27 vs Cleveland
41. Fri 1/15/27 vs Golden State
42. Mon 1/18/27 vs Philadelphia
43. Wed 1/20/27 vs Portland
44. Fri 1/22/27 vs New York
45. Sat 1/23/27 at Miami
46. Tue 1/26/27 at Detroit
47. Thu 1/28/27 at New York
48. Sat 1/30/27 at Milwaukee
49. Mon 2/1/27 vs Washington
50. Wed 2/3/27 at Indiana
51. Fri 2/5/27 vs Boston
52. Sun 2/7/27 vs Denver
53. Mon 2/8/27 vs Miami
54. Wed 2/10/27 New Orleans
55. Fri 2/12/27 vs Phoenix
56. Sun 2/14/27 vs Sacramento
57. Tue 2/16/27 vs Toronto
58. Wed 2/17/27 at Brooklyn
59. Thu 2/25/27 at Chicago
60. Fri 2/26/27 at Toronto
61. Sun 2/28/27 at Orlando
62. Wed 3/3/27 vs Chicago
63. Thu 3/4/27 Memphis
64. Sat 3/6/27 at Cleveland
65. Mon 3/8/27 at Memphis
66. Wed 3/10/27 at Minnesota
67. Thu 3/11/27 vs Brooklyn
68. Sat 3/13/27 Orlando
69. Mon 3/15/27 at Dallas
70. Wed 3/17/27 at Utah
71. Fri 3/19/27 at LA Lakers
72. Sat 3/20/27 at LA Clippers
73. Mon 3/22/27 at Golden State
74. Wed 3/24/27 at Sacramento
75. Sat 3/27/27 vs Utah
76. Mon 3/29/27 Minnesota
77. Wed 3/31/27 vs LA Clippers
78. Fri 4/2/27 at Toronto
79. Sun 4/4/27 at Philadelphia
80. Tue 4/6/27- vs New York
81. Fri 4/9/27 vs Boston
82. Sun 4/11/27 at Cleveland

Rotation

Starters

G- CJ McCollum
G- Nickeil Alexander-Walker
F- Dyson Daniels
F- Jalen Johnson
C- Onyeka Okongwu

The Hawks had one of the best starting lineups in the NBA over the final part of the season and I don't think they are going to tinker with it, even though there is a small chance that Lu Dort earns a starting spot over either Alexander-Walker or McCollum, but to begin the season, I expect this to be the starting lineup for the Hawks.

Top of the bench rotation

G- Kingston Flemings/Ryan Nembhard
G/F- Lu Dort
G/F- Aaron Wiggins
PF- Mouhamed Gueye/Asa Newell/Zuby Ejiofor
C- Jock Landale

Dort, Wiggins, and Landale are locks to play each and every night for the Hawks. The other two positions are going to come down to some position battles in training camp.

The Hawks would probably love it if Flemings would emerge and take the backup point guard spot from day one, but sometimes rookies need to progress on their own timeline and the Hawks traded for Nembhard for a reason. If Flemings is not ready to go from day one, Nembhard is a nice fallback option who showed the ability to run an offense last season.

The power forward spot is very interesting. If Mouhamed Gueye had not gotten injured earlier this summer, I think he would have been the heavy favorite to be the backup to Jalen Johnson. However, Gueye will be out for training camp and the preseason, opening the door for Newell or Ejiofor. Can the second-year forward or the rookie emerge to be a reliable rotational player?

End of the rotation

SF- Corey Kispert
SG- Buddy Hield
C- Henri Veesaar
PF- Jalen Wilson (Two-Way)
G- Keshon Gilbert (Two-Way)
PG- RayJ Dennis (Two-Way)

Barring injuries, I don't expect any of these players to be in the rotation on a nightly basis this season. Kispert and Hield could be used in the event the Hawks need shooting, but this transition to a defensive minded, physical team does not leave much room for Kispert and Hield's defensive break downs.

Key Dates

Sept. 29: NBA Training Camps open
Jan. 5: 10-day contracts may now be signed
Jan. 10: All NBA contracts are guaranteed for the remainder of the season
Feb. 11: NBA Trade Deadline
Feb. 19-24: NBA All-Star break
April 11: 2026-27 Regular Season ends (All 30 teams play)
April 12: Rosters set for NBA Playoffs 2027 (3 p.m. ET)

Storylines to watch

Jalen Johnson Atlanta Hawk — Feb 20, 2026; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Hawks forward Jalen Johnson (1) handles the ball against the Miami Heat in the third quarter at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

1. Was last year's 20-6 finish and run to the playoffs real?

Even if you are a full-believer in the Hawks, there is something to their schedule playing a part in their run to the playoffs a year ago.

Atlanta is going to get a chance to show that last season was not a fluke and that the moves they made this offseason strengthened the weak parts of their team. They have improved depth with Dort, Wiggins, Landale, and Flemings, as well as continuity with their starting lineup. They should be a good defensive team with plenty of lineup versatility they can use to their advantage.

Given the depth and talent of the Eastern Conference, it won't be easy to avoid the play-in tournament and make the playoffs, but Atlanta is betting on internal development and depth to be advantages to them.

2. Is a big move on the horizon?

If you paid close enough attention, there was a peculiar way that the Hawks structered and acquired contracts this offseason.

Atlanta has an abundance of expiring contracts (McCollum, Dort, Landale, Gueye, Hield, and Nembhard) that gives the Hawks more than $60 million in expiring salary. The Hawks could just keep those contracts and open up cap space next summer, but if a star player that they believe can elevate their roster becomes available, they might be ready to pounce.

3. New Additions

The additions of Dort, Wiggins, Flemings, Ejiofor, Veesaar, and Nembhard should give the Hawks improved depth. When they got to their first round-series against the Knicks, Atlanta's only reliable bench option was Jonathan Kuminga. Even with Kuminga gone, the Hawks should have more options off their bench.

Having Dort, Wiggins, and Landale is going to give the Hawks a real second-unit, but if Flemings can play and play well early, that would make them even better. There is concern over the third center spot, especially given Landale's injury to end last season, but that is a bridge they will cross if they have to. If none of the three young power forwards can step up, that would also put the bench in a bind.

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