Hawks guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker was left off HoopsHype's top 10 shooting guards despite a breakout 2025-26 season.
The Atlanta Hawks got a breakout performance from Nickeil Alexander-Walker in 2025-26. Recently, he was left off HoopsHype's list of the top 10 shooting guards in the NBA.
Was he snubbed?
It's a difficult question. Part of it depends on how you define an increasingly vague off-guard position. Some of the players on this list arguably don't fit neatly into that category.
So, the next logical step is to look at the list.
Alexander-Walker Should Have Made the Cut
- Anthony Edwards
- Donovan Mitchell
- Devin Booker
- Amen Thompson
- Austin Reaves
- Stephon Castle
- Kon Knueppel
- VJ Edgecombe
- Derrick White
- Tyler Herro
It makes sense to start from the bottom.
Last year, Alexander-Walker averaged more points per game than Herro, 20.9 to 20.5, while also shooting a higher percentage from 3-point range, 39.9% to 37.8%. Alexander-Walker is also uncontroversially the better defender.
So, what gives?
Herro is a more dynamic ball-handler and shot creator, but Alexander-Walker made strides in those areas last year. It's difficult to justify putting Herro ahead of him, and some name-value bias may be doing some work here.
It's fair to rank White ahead of Alexander-Walker, although his 3-point efficiency nosedived last year. If he can't bring that back to prior levels, he should slip in these rankings moving forward.
Edgecombe was not better than Alexander-Walker last year, but he was a rookie. If we're baking in some expected improvement, this is reasonable, if a bit bold.
Otherwise, we've got to jump all the way to No. 4 before the list gets interesting again.
Amen Thompson was a better player than Alexander-Walker last year, and since he's young, that's unlikely to change. But is Thompson really a "shooting guard," or did he line up at the 2 because the Houston Rockets have a defense-first, wing-heavy philosophy?
Thompson can hardly shoot at all. He's better categorized as a point forward. Even though he's a better player than Alexander-Walker, it's hard to say he's a better off-guard. Still, it was his primary position last year, so perhaps I'm being pedantic.
Either way, it feels like someone should have made room for Alexander-Walker.
Does it matter?
Alexander-Walker Still Has Plenty to Prove
Ideally, Alexander-Walker will use this as fuel. He's not properly appreciated around the league yet.
He belongs on this list. He had a better 2025-26 season than Herro or Edgecombe, and probably White.
Still, making lists like this is inconsequential compared to winning games.
And there aren't 10 shooting guards who would help the Hawks do that more than Alexander-Walker.
