Jalen Johnson Shines In First Career All-Star Game

Did Jalen Johnson perform well in his All-Star debut?

Feb 14, 2026; Inglewood, California, USA; Jalen Johnson speaks during interviews at media day at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: William Liang-Imagn Images | William Liang-Imagn Images

Tonight, the NBA All-Star Game returned for its 75th game, and, what seems like, the 100th time, a new format was in place. This time, the format was two teams of U.S. players versus a team of international players, known as the World team.

The games were played in a tournament-style format and were more competitive than in years past, but not as much in the championship game. In the championship game, both USA teams played each other, with the "Young USA" red team winning over the "OG Stripes" blue team, with Anthony Edwards winning MVP. Jalen Johnson had a few fun moments in the game as well, with a few dunks and a couple of made three-pointers.

Jalen Johnson Jam in the All-Star Game!!! pic.twitter.com/P1TFeezUcl

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) February 15, 2026

As for Johnson's overall performance this game and this weekend, he put on a fairly entertaining show. Yesterday, Johnson performed well in the skills challenge, and today he followed up with an eventful All-Star Game performance that had Hawks fans buzzing on social media.

Jalen Johnson made us #Hawks fans proud! #TrueToAtlanta pic.twitter.com/959qmEFCnD

— MsDee 🥰 (@femaleatlhawk) February 16, 2026

Jalen Johnson is out here TRYING DURING THE ALL STAR GAME!!

The game I love is so back! pic.twitter.com/VUAIl6WhFv

— SleeperHawks (@SleeperHawks) February 15, 2026

Journey to be an All-Star

The coolest part about Johnson even making it this far was that he made the All-Star Game in his first five years in the NBA, after starting in the NBA G League out of college. During this time, Johnson was sent down to the College Park Skyhawks as a rookie, eventually worked his way up to the main roster, and became who we've seen him be today.

From the @cpskyhawks as a rookie to an #NBAAllStar in year five! Shoutout to #GLeagueAlum Jalen Johnson. @ATLHawks ⭐️ pic.twitter.com/lZrFwO1V6U

— NBA G League (@nbagleague) February 15, 2026

Now that All-Star weekend has ended, it's time that we start taking a look at the Hawks' end-of-season outlook. Our own Jackson Caudell stated the following about the rest of the Hawks' season:

"The Hawks have been a below average team for the entire season, but they have one possible wildcard that could improve them. The Hawks big move at the trade deadline was sending Kristaps Porzingis to the Golden State Warriors for Jonathan Kuminga and Buddy Hield. Hield is not expected to be a big part of the rotation going forward, but Kuminga has enough talent to make you wonder if he could really give the Hawks a boost. It could also go poorly.

At 10th in the standings, Atlanta is currently a half game behind Charlotte for 9th, three back from Miami for 8th, 3.5 back from Orlando for 7th, and five games back from Philly for 6th.

A key thing to note about the Hawks for the rest of the season is that they have the fourth-easiest schedule left. Another thing to remember is that they already have two wins over Philly and Orlando, as well as one over the Heat. With those three teams above the Hawks in the standings, those games are going to stand out the rest of the way, and Atlanta could still win the season series against each of those teams and earn the tiebreaker. While it might seem far fetched based on their recent play, there is a faint chance that the Hawks could sneak into the top six. Unlikely, but possible.

I think that Atlanta is going to win enough games to remain in the play-in race, but not be able to jump into the top six. I think Atlanta finds a way to finish the season 41-41 (15-11 after the break) and earn the 8th seed after two wins in the play-in tournament."

Based on everything that this Hawks team has gon through this season, having a chance at the playoffs is nothing to be down about, especially given how young they are. With the rise of Johnson and the amount of young talent that will be added to this team after the break, Hawks fans should be excited.

Based on how this weekend has gone, it is safe to say the Hawks have found their face of the franchise for the future.