Atlanta Hawks: It’s Now Or Never For John Jenkins

By Adam McGee | Oct 9, 2014

Sep 29, 2014; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard John Jenkins (12) waits to get his portrait taken during the Atlanta Hawks media day at Philips Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports /

Getting to the NBA is often talked about as being the dream, but for young prospects the reality is there’s much more to it than that. Take Atlanta Hawks shooting guard John Jenkins, for example.

Jenkins arrived in the NBA as the 23rd pick of the 2012 draft, and had already built somewhat of a reputation for himself. Jenkins was being labelled by many as the best shooter of that draft class, so with his niche supposedly carved out already, it seemed like it would all be smooth sailing from that point on.

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Put simply, that’s just not how it works though. Jenkins had a solid if unspectacular rookie campaign, taking to the floor in a total of 61 games. Then there was last season. There’s no doubt that Jenkins would have wanted to kick on and play a bigger role as a sophomore, yet injuries put a stop to that idea.

What started as a niggling back injury last preseason developed into something much more persistent. After only 13 games, Jenkins’ second year was over.

Jenkins is lucky, as the Atlanta Hawks have shown faith in him and stuck by him. Despite him being injured at the time, the team stepped up, and picked up Jenkins option for this season. This allowed Jenkins’ the confidence and freedom to focus on his rehab, and considering he was forced to go under the knife to improve his back problems, that couldn’t be more important.

The Tennessee native has a fourth-year team option in his contract for next season, but there has been no indication that the Hawks would be overly eager to pick this up. If Jenkins wants to extend his time with the Hawks, and potentially even in the NBA, he needs to stay healthy and remind everyone of what he’s capable of.

The earliest signs are positive too for the former Vanderbilt man. With Kyle Korver absent due to the birth of his son, Jenkins started the Hawks opening preseason game on Monday night. Jenkins helped Atlanta to put the New Orleans Pelicans to the sword with a team high 13 points, adding in six rebounds for good measure too. According to Kris Willis of Peachtree Hoops, this positive play didn’t go unnoticed by Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer either:

"We are all excited for John to be healthy. You can see his confidence in practice. You can feel his confidence even when he’s just walking around the facility. He’s got a bounce."

That should be music to the ears of Hawks fans, who may feel like Jenkins still has something to offer the team. If the 23-year-old is looking for inspiration, he won’t have to look very far either. Having been drafted in the same class, not many expected Mike Scott to develop in the way he did, but last year he took massive strides forward.

Having played very little for Atlanta as a rookie, Scott pushed his way into the rotation last year, even becoming a mainstay in the playoffs. If Jenkins can mirror Scott’s jump, he’ll have every chance of the Hawks asking him back for another year.

Having spoken to Jenkins at media day, another Kris Willis piece from about a week ago highlights why Jenkins may be able to make that leap. Jenkins is feeling extremely confident as his coach noticed, and that seems to apply for both his game and his health. Jenkins told Willis:

"I feel really really good. Best I have ever felt in my life."

It’s no use to Jenkins just feeling it though, the time has come for him to show it on the court, and fight for his NBA future.

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