Is Jonathan Kuminga the Hawks' best chance against the Knicks?

Here’s a fun fact for you: The Atlanta Hawks’ starting five, which had the second-best plus-minus of any five-man unit in the NBA during the regular season , entered the work week with the worst plus-minus of any five-man unit in the 2026 NBA playoffs . That seems kind of odd, considering the Hawks head into Tuesday’s Pivotal Game 5™ against the New York Knicks knotted up at two games apiece, having outdueled Jalen Brunson and Co. in crunch-time twice in the past week.

It’s true, though, and it’s not the result of one frigid run during a blowout or anything. The lineup of Jalen Johnson, CJ McCollum, Onyeka Okongwu, Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Dyson Daniels was outscored by three points in Game 1 , by six in Game 2 , by seven in Game 3 , and by four in Game 4 , totaling a big ol’ minus-20 in 62 total minutes across four games. That works out to a -13.

7 net rating for the series. Which is sub-Wizards and Nets territory . Which is, y’know, Not Where You Want To Be.

And yet: Atlanta has taken two games off the favored Knicks despite its starting lineup rarely clicking, and returns to Madison Square Garden with reason to believe it can win what is now a three-game sprint to Round 2. One big reason why: the play of Jonathan Kuminga, whom the Hawks added at the trade deadline after things pretty spectacularly fell apart in Golden State, and who has proven to be an absolute demon in transition, making New York pay for every half-step delay in getting back, and a hot knife through butter rolling to the rim off a high ball screen, detonating in the paint. Kuminga’s physicality can play up in the postseason; he’s a credible threat to attack smaller defenders on mismatches, bully-balling them into the post or overwhelming them on the offensive glass, and can earn himself trips to the foul line with that advantage and aggressiveness.