“Jalen Johnson is him”: Tennis sensation Ben Shelton reacts to Hawks’ rising star posterizing dunk on Chet Holmgren
Jalen Johnson and the Atlanta Hawks picked up a big win over the OKC Thunder on Wednesday, giving the team some much-needed momentum to start the year. Currently, the Hawks (14-19) are sitting in tenth place in the Eastern Conference, with a two-game win streak under their belt after Wednesday's win. In addition to the momentum boost, Jalen Johnson also notably had a career night.
The former Duke Blue Devil erupted for a 28-point outing while in foul trouble, helping the Atlanta Hawks secure a 141-138 win over the 23-10 Thunder. The loss put the Thunder one game behind the Minnesota Timberwolves, who sit in first place.
The Hawks jumped out to an early lead, outscoring the Thunder 39-25 in the first quarter, before then managing to hold onto the lead heading into the half. Late in the second quarter, Jalen Johnson went up for a massive dunk on Chet Holmgren, putting the seven-footer on a poster.
The dunk caught the attention of tennis star Ben Shelton, who reposted the footage on his Instagram story. Along with the replay, Shelton also wrote:
"Jalen Johnson is him" and "On Chet's head"
Looking at Jalen Johnson and the Atlanta Hawks' big win over the OKC Thunder
Jalen Johnson and the Atlanta Hawks' win over the OKC Thunder build momentum for the team as they look to make a late-season push. The win also saw Johnson score a career-high 28 points while in foul trouble.
Coach Quin Snyder was unable to play Johnson for the entire 30 minutes to be cautious with the young star. Despite the circumstances, he managed to add seven rebounds, three assists, and four steals to his stat line, earning him praise from fans and analysts.
The 28 points scored by Johnson led the team, with Trae Young contributing 24 points and 11 assists and Dejounte Murray adding another 22 points. In addition, sharpshooter Bogdan Bogdanovic was able to add 23 points to the team's total as the team fought off a fourth-quarter run by the Thunder.
On the flip side, for OKC, the loss dropped them to 8-2 in their last 10. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the way for the team in the loss with 33 points. His performance also saw him flirt with a triple-double, as he recorded 13 rebounds and eight assists.
The Thunder will look to bounce back from the loss on Friday when they play the Brooklyn Nets, while the Hawks will look to keep momentum rolling against Indiana.