The Atlanta Hawks used the eighth overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft to select Kingston Flemings, turning a draft-night swap with the New Orleans Pelicans into a guard they hope can help run the team. Atlanta had originally been sitting on the number 23 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft before the trade sent the Pelicans up to number 13 and brought back an unprotected first-round pick for 2026.
That pick turned into No. 8, and the Hawks used it on a 6-foot-4 lead guard from the University of Houston who made his case in one college season. Flemings led Houston with 16.1 points per game and 5.2 assists per game, then capped his freshman year by scoring 42 against Texas Tech, a night that set the school’s freshman scoring record and included 4-for-9 shooting from 3-point range.
Atlanta did not make the move just to add another scorer. The Hawks need someone to take over and lead after Trae Young’s exit, and last season CJ McCollum handled the ball even though he was not a natural point guard. Flemings fits that search because he can organize an offense, pressure defenses with the dribble and create turnovers, as shown by his 1.5 steals per game at Houston and the defensive edge that helped him gain notice as a draft prospect.
That is also where the fit gets less clean. Flemings was compared to De’Aaron Fox as a prospect, but his value in Atlanta may come less from instant high-volume scoring than from steady ball movement and two-way play. If the Hawks want a true floor general right away, they are asking a freshman who carried Houston to the Sweet Sixteen before the Cougars lost to Illinois to make a fast leap into a far bigger job.
The pick gives Atlanta a player with a clear résumé and a clear assignment. Whether Flemings becomes the main answer at point guard is the next question, and it will determine whether the trade becomes a simple draft win or the start of a larger backcourt change for the Hawks.
