Corey Kispert Says Full Offseason Helped Him Feel 'More Like Myself' With Hawks

Corey Kispert came off the bench Monday night and scored a game-high 19 points against the Memphis Grizzlies, though the Atlanta Hawks lost their exhibition opener at State Farm Arena 132-123.

He shot 7-of-11 from the field, made four 3-pointers, and went 1-of-2 at the free-throw line. Ten of his points came in the third quarter, when he went 4-of-4.

Kispert spent the end of last season looking forward to a full summer, a full camp, and a full season with Atlanta.

"I had a really good summer and did a lot of work on clearing my head, reestablishing my habits, getting back to what works, and doubling and tripling down on that," Kispert said. "I came in here ready to go. We've played a lot of live stuff in camp, had a lot of pickup beforehand, and the games we've had so far in camp translated for me tonight.

"I felt like I was hitting the ground running and running downhill, and it felt really good," Kispert continued. "I'm hoping that carries over through the rest of the preseason and into the year. Shots fall, shots don't, but it was a good night."

Washington traded Kispert and CJ McCollum to Atlanta in January for Trae Young. Kispert had appeared in 19 games for the Wizards that season, averaging 9.2 points. He had missed time with a fracture in the tip of his right thumb in November and a hamstring injury in late December.

The Hawks were 17-21 when the deal was made. They finished 46-36, won the Southeast Division, and entered the playoffs as the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference before losing to the New York Knicks in six games in the first round.

Atlanta closed the regular season by winning 20 of its last 26 games. The playoff trip was the franchise's first since 2021.

On Feb. 26 against Washington, Kispert scored a career-high 33 points. He went 11-of-19 from the field and 6-of-11 from 3-point range in a 126-96 win.

The staff and players in Atlanta made the move as easy as it could be. The rest of it was not.

"People always told me that getting traded was hard, and getting traded in the middle of the season is even harder," Kispert explained. "I guess I believed them, but you don't really know until you do it. Showing up here, they made it as easy as possible. The staff here, the players, the team — all of it made it as easy as it could be. But it's really difficult having to show up, feeling like you're treading water, figuring out a new system, trying to fit in with the guys, and everything feels chaotic.

"As a shooter, you want comfort and familiarity, and you want to feel good," Kispert added. "Even when the season ended last year, I was looking forward to a whole summer, a whole camp, and a whole season with this team to feel like I was really a part of it rather than a new face trying to get acquainted halfway through. So it's been really great. I feel much more comfortable, feel more like myself, and I'm looking forward to hitting the ground running."

Monday's second quarter went the other way. Kispert, Asa Newell, and Jock Landale checked in during the period, and Memphis outscored Atlanta 49-26. None of the Hawks' starters played in the second half, which Atlanta won 62-51.

Kispert said the Hawks are installing material similar to what they ran last season.

"[Being] in my sixth year, with this team, the game plan doesn't change," Kispert said. "We're trying to play a similar style of basketball, and we're trying to do similar things. We're putting in stuff that's similar to what we did last year, but obviously faces change, and that's the biggest adjustment. Luckily for us, the faces that are here now have a lot of winning pedigree, and they know what it means to win, so all that does is raise our level.

"[Newell] could talk about it too — the week or month we had before training camp, and then the camp we had was super competitive," Kispert detailed. "It was super high-level, and I hadn't really been a part of a training camp like that since I've been in the league. So [we] were hitting the ground running, and tonight was a big learning experience based on the week we had. We have a lot of guys on our team who bring a really high level of effort and professionalism, and that's going to carry us, especially in January and February when the games start to blend together."

Atlanta acquired Luguentz Dort and Aaron Wiggins from the Oklahoma City Thunder this summer. Both were on the Thunder team that won the 2025 NBA championship. The Hawks also agreed Sept. 22 to acquire Dorian Finney-Smith from the Charlotte Hornets.

Dort did not play Monday. McCollum, 34, sat out as well.

Washington drafted Kispert 15th overall out of Gonzaga in 2021. He is in his sixth NBA season.

Atlanta's next game is Thursday in San Antonio. Tip-off against the Spurs is 8 p.m. ET.

Kispert is in the second season of a four-year, $54 million extension he signed with Washington in October 2024.