The Atlanta Hawks Defense Needs Fixing Quickly - Here Is How They Can Do It

Even though the Hawks defense hasn't been a good unit throughout most of this season, there is time to turn it around if they make several critical moves.

Dec 21, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Chicago Bulls forward Matas Buzelis (14) dribbles guarded by Atlanta Hawks forward Jalen Johnson (1) during the first half at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

After the Hawks started off the season with respectable numbers on defense, they've come crashing back down into familiar territory. Their most recent game against the Bulls is an excellent indication of how terrible they are on that end right now. They gave up 152 points and allowed Chicago to shoot 52% from the field and 48.2% from deep, making 23 threes. The Bulls didn't even bother shooting a single shot from the midrange - they beat the Hawks up in the paint and torched them from outside.

While this is probably the most embarrassing defensive effort since the Hawks' blowout loss to the Wizards, Atlanta's defense has been below-average for several games now. They are 18th in defensive rating, 19th in opponent 3P%, 21st in opponent points in the paint and 22nd in opponent FG%. They turn teams over at a decent rate - they're fifth in steals per game largely due to the fact they have a lot of length in their starting lineup. However, those steals aren't as impactful when they cannot get stops, struggle with rotations, overhelp and fail to contest shots.

To be clear, it isn't like Atlanta's defense is hopeless. They have the necessary pieces to be an average defense at the bare minimum, and realistically, they should be better than that. Trae Young always keeps the Hawks at a ceiling on defense, but it's worth remembering Atlanta was 3rd in opponent 3P%, 12th in opponents points per game, and 12th in opponent FG% during their run to the Eastern Conference Finals. He's also been in the lineup for far too few minutes to be the sole culprit for their struggles on that end.

While solving this problem won't be easy, here are some simple changes the Hawks can make in order to improve things on defense in the short-term.

Play Mo Gueye More Minutes - Please?

Dec 14, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Philadelphia 76ers forward Justin Edwards (11) drives to the basket against Atlanta Hawks forward Mouhamed Gueye (18) during the first quarter at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Godfree-Imagn Images | Jordan Godfree-Imagn Images

It's understandable that Quin Snyder is hesitant to give Mo Gueye a big role. He's not a very consistent offensive player, and the Hawks' offense has been downright anemic in his minutes - they're 2.3 points per possession worse with him on the floor (33rd percentile). Gueye himself is also shooting 25% from deep and crowds the floor for Atlanta. However, he's great around the paint on both ends. He's shooting 85% at the rim, hitting 39 of his 46 shots inside, and opponents shoot 5.8% worse at the rim when he's in the game. The Hawks also hold opponents to shooting 1.7% worse from deep in his minutes, which is in the 68th percentile. His rebounding and fouling could improve, but it's hard for him to make strides in that area when he's not getting playing time of significance.

There just isn't a good reason why Luke Kennard plays 20.1 minutes per game, and Gueye plays 16.5 minutes every night. He hasn't broken 20 minutes in any of his last five games, while Kennard played 29 and 21 minutes respectively against the Spurs and 76ers. Especially with the injury to Kristaps Porzingis, there's plenty of room in the rotation for Gueye to take on an expanded role. It shouldn't be this hard to find a few minutes for a talented player, and it's frustrating that Snyder doesn't seem to maximize him despite the flashes.

Ease Up On The Luke Kennard Experience

Nov 10, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Los Angeles Clippers center Brook Lopez (11) moves the ball against Atlanta Hawks guard Luke Kennard (3) during the first half at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Luke Kennard has been a major disappointment on offense, and he's been about what fans should have expected on defense. That should render him almost unplayable on most nights. However, he continues to stick in the rotation and somehow played nine minutes against the Bulls without attempting a single shot. On offense, he's shooting 43.9% from deep on three attempts a night. That'd be fine if he had more to offer on offense, but his main responsibility on this team is to be a sharpshooter. Being hesitant to get attempts up flies completely in contrast to that. He's also averaging his worst assist numbers in three seasons and turning the ball over in 15.3% of his possessions (19th percentile among all guards). That has a major role in making Atlanta's defense worse because it means they're unable to compensate for their defensive issues due to their own offensive problems.

On defense, he's a complete non-factor. He doesn't foul a lot, but that's about the only nice thing that can be said about his play on that end. The Hawks are 2.2 points better per possession with him sitting on defense, which is in the 35th percentile. That's unacceptable from someone who is also struggling to contribute on offense. Cutting his minutes down to the 9-15 minute range would reflect the level that he's been playing at.

Ramping Up Effort

Dec 21, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Chicago Bulls forward Jalen Smith (25) is fouled by Atlanta Hawks forward Jalen Johnson (1) during the second half at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

While Jalen Johnson has done a lot of good for Atlanta's offense, his defense has fallen off a cliff. After arguably the best defensive season of his career before a season-ending shoulder injury, the Hawks are slightly better on defense (0.7 points per possession - 45th percentile among all forwards) when Johnson doesn't play. His defensive rebounding is still excellent, but he's not blocking shots (0.5 BLK% - 21st percentile) and he's fouling more often than he did last season. His individual defensive rating of 116 this season is almost identical to De'Andre Hunter's with Cleveland, and it doesn't take much effort to see that Hunter has been a liability for the Cavaliers on defense.

When diving into his effort, Johnson averages 4.5 contested shots and 2.3 deflections per game. For some context, that's the same number of shots Tyler Herro contests and the same number of deflections that Evan Mobley has this season. It's not a perfect comparison, but he's about as mobile as a big man on the perimeter while also contesting as many shots as a defensively-flawed guard. That's not a great combination and it isn't like he set an unreachable standard for himself in a smaller role on defense. Last season, he was contesting 5.4 shots per game to go with 2.7 deflections last season. Although the difference seems marginal, getting those numbers back up while perhaps scaling back a bit on offense and letting Trae Young run more possessions would help Johnson get back to being more of a two-way force.