Winners and Losers From Atlanta Hawks Preseason Win Over the Indiana Pacers

The Hawks played their third preseason game tonight against the Pacers and will be back on the court for the penultimate game on Monday night vs Oklahoma City

Oct 10, 2026; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Indiana Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard (2) dribbles the ball while Atlanta Hawks guard Dyson Daniels (5) defends in the first half at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Atlanta Hawks were back on the court tonight for some preseason action against the Indiana Pacers, a team they are expected to be competing with for a spot in the Eastern Conference Playoffs, and Atlanta won.

The Hawks were without Nickeil Alexander-Walker tonight, but had the rest of their starting lineup and main bench rotation available to them. The Pacers were without superstar point guard Tyrese Haliburton, but everyone else was a go. It was a close game throughout and the Hawks reserves ended up sealing the win.

Here are our biggest takeaways from tonight's action

Winner: Jalen Johnson

Johnson did not have a good first preseason game earlier this week against the Memphis Grizzlies and then he did not play on Thursday against the Spurs, but he bounced back with a strong performance tonight against the Indiana Pacers, who played with the majority of their starters.

Johnson finished the game with 20 points, seven rebounds, and three assists tonight and it was an efficient game as well, shooting 8-12 from the field and 2-2 from three.

For the Hawks to return to the postseason and potentially make some noise, Johnson has to continue to elevate as a player. He had a solid night tonight and had a much better game.

Loser: Deep Bench Players

This was not a night that Quin Snyder wanted to play deep into his bench. The Hawks elected to play their starters and the main bench players tonight in what I would call the Hawks primary rotation.

Asa Newell did not play in the first half and did not see the court until later in the second half. After playing a bigger role in the first two games, he took a backseat tonight. Jalen Wilson, RayJ Dennis (who did actually play in the first half), Zuby Ejiofor, and Kobe Johnson did not a lot of developmental time tonight, but I think that will change in the next couple of games.

Winner: Aaron Wiggins

Wiggins had a big night off the bench in the first half for the Hawks. Wiggins had an uneven first game vs. Memphis, then got the start against the Spurs on Thursday, but tonight was the biggest performance of the preseason.

Wiggins led the bench with 13 points on 4-9 shooting, 3-6 from three, as well as two assists and two steals. He shot the ball early and often and made his presence felt on the offensive end, which is something the Hawks need.

Winner: Onyeka Okongwu

The Hawks center had a really solid night on offense, especially in the second half of the game.

Okongwu ended up with 18 points on 5-10 shooting, 2-7 from three, as well as three rebounds, and three assists. Okongwu had a career year shooting from three a season ago, but there have been some doubts over whether he could continue doing that at a high-level. Tonight was not the best indicator of that, but his scoring burst early in the second half shows why he is such an important piece to Atlanta's offense.