The Atlanta Hawks are now 1-2 early in the 2025-26 season.<\/p>\n
In the season opener, they lost in an embarrassing fashion, allowing the Toronto Raptors to break a franchise scoring record<\/a>. They were able to bounce back against the Orlando Magic, former 39th overall pick Mo Gueye<\/a>‘s defense on former first overall pick Paolo Banchero<\/a> indisputably a key factor in their victory<\/a>. However, the increasingly shorthanded Hawks then lost to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the second leg of their first back-to-back of the season.<\/p>\n There’s no shame in losing to the reigning NBA champions while missing three starters (Jalen Johnson<\/a>, Zaccharie Risacher<\/a>, and Kristaps Porzingis<\/a>). Furthermore, Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander<\/a> is once again playing at an MVP level. Nevertheless, a week into 2025-26 and there’s one particularly intriguing trend that’s worth monitoring.<\/p>\n Entering the season, a couple of well-known players were emerging as the Hawks x-factor. At the offensive end, Luke Kennard<\/a> presented as a generational marksman who could thrive<\/a> alongside an elite facilitator like Trae Young<\/a>. At the other end, Nickeil Alexander-Walker<\/a> arrived in Atlanta looking like a godsend for their point-of-attack defense<\/a>. Then there’s Johnson, a potential All-Star who spent part of his offseason<\/a> training with Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James<\/a>, who’s already enshrined in the Hall of Fame<\/a>.<\/p>\n As it turns out, Atlanta’s early season x-factor has actually been Gueye.<\/p>\n #nba<\/a> Mo Gueye bien pr\u00e9sent cette nuit dans la victoire des Hawks sur le parquet d\u2019Orlando (111-107). Le S\u00e9n\u00e9galais a \u00e9t\u00e9 efficace et a bien d\u00e9fendu sur Banchero limit\u00e9 \u00e0 11 points seulement.<\/p>\n \ud83c\uddf8\ud83c\uddf3\ud83d\udd25#basket221<\/a> #hawks<\/a> #usa<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/vOJaY47aTS<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Basket221 Officiel \ud83c\udfc0\ud83c\uddf8\ud83c\uddf3 (@basket_221) October 25, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\nMo Gueye Is Emerging As Hawks X-Factor<\/h2>\n
Defining Moments<\/h3>\n
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