Jalen Johnson and Nickeil Alexander-Walker ruled out of Hawks’ game vs. Wizards

By Canadian Press on February 26, 2026.

ATLANTA (AP) — The Atlanta Hawks will be without All-Star forward Jalen Johnson and guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker in the second of a two-game home series against the Washington Wizards on Thursday night.

Johnson exited Tuesday night’s 119-98 win against the Wizards in the first quarter with a left hip flexor injury. He was ruled out after being evaluated by the training staff and finished the game with five points, three rebounds and two steals in six minutes.

Alexander-Walker will also be sidelined with a sprained left foot after previously being considered day-to-day. He scored 16 points and had five assists and three rebounds on Tuesday night.

Jonathan Kuminga and Zaccharie Risacher will join Dyson Daniels, Onyeka Okongwu and CJ McCollum in the lineup instead.

Kuminga comes off a dominant outing in his Atlanta debut, scoring a team-high 27 points and adding seven rebounds, four assists and two steals. The Golden State Warriors sent Kuminga and Buddy Hield to the Hawks in exchange for center Kristaps Porzingis at the trade deadline.

Risacher has taken on a different role for the Hawks over the past three games after being replaced by McCollum in the starting lineup. McCollum is another of the Hawks’ seven newcomers. He was acquired with Corey Kispert in the early January deal that sent Trae Young to the Wizards.

___

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

Maura Carey, The Associated Press