CJ McCollum inks one-year extension with Hawks

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

Veteran shooting guard CJ McCollum will run it back with the Atlanta Hawks after agreeing to a one-year, USD 21 million (PHP 1,282,890,000) contract extension on June 22, 2026.

Further details of the contract have yet to be disclosed, but both parties have already agreed to the deal, which will prevent him from becoming an unrestricted free agent at the end of June.

McCollum was Atlanta’s biggest midseason acquisition during the 2025–26 NBA season as part of a massive package involving Trae Young and the Washington Wizards.

Despite arriving late with the Hawks, McCollum quickly became the franchise’s veteran leader, showing glimpses of his clutch genes when they gave the New York Knicks a run for their money in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Although Atlanta lost to the newly crowned NBA champions, McCollum’s clutch performances in Games 2 and 3 of the first round gave a huge scare to the New York fan base when the Hawks took a 2-1 series lead.

Trailing 0-1 in the series, McCollum put Atlanta on his back in Game 2, draining the game-winning jumper with only 7.1 seconds remaining to help the Hawks tie the series with a 107-106 win.

McCollum wasn’t done doing damage after another Game 3 masterclass, dropping 23 points, including the go-ahead basket inside the final 12 seconds, putting Atlanta ahead, 2-1.

The Knicks regrouped later and swept the next three games to advance, but McCollum capped his first season in Atlanta on a high note.

McCollum finished the season averaging 19.2 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 2.0 assists, a huge statistical jump from his first-half outing with the Wizards.

As of now, Hawks management has yet to lay down the groundwork on whether it will retain its core group of Jalen Johnson, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Jonathan Kuminga, and Dyson Daniels.