Nickeil Alexander-WalkerAtlanta Hawks · #7
Nickeil Alexander-Walker is a two-way guard for the Atlanta Hawks and the 2026 NBA Most Improved Player — the first Canadian to win the award. The cousin of two-time MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, he was drafted 17th in 2019, developed as a 3-and-D role player in New Orleans, Utah, and Minnesota, then broke out with Atlanta in 2025-26 for 20.8 points a game while setting a franchise single-season record with 251 three-pointers.
Nickeil Alexander-Walker — the report card
Read his whole game at a glance, then dive into any skill. Grades from the DNA model + real production.
Where Nickeil Alexander-Walker stands
Live ladders from the Balladex models, and what he's chasing. Rankings recompute nightly from real production, accolades, and search demand.
Nickeil Alexander-Walker — every number, three levels deep
Headline → metric → the raw history behind it. Real career data; tracking-only metrics labeled.
How the model sees Nickeil Alexander-Walker
Projection = per-minute rate × projected minutes. Rates are recency- and health-weighted, aged along a per-stat curve, and adjusted for live usage/role. No black box — every number shows its work.
Nickeil Alexander-Walker career stats, season by season
| Season | GP | MIN | PTS | REB | AST | FG% | 3P% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019-20 | 47 | 12.6 | 5.7 | 1.8 | 1.9 | .368 | .346 |
| 2020-21 | 46 | 21.9 | 11.0 | 3.1 | 2.2 | .419 | .347 |
| 2021-22 | 50 | 26.3 | 12.8 | 3.3 | 2.8 | .375 | .311 |
| 2022-23 | 36 | 14.7 | 6.3 | 1.6 | 2.1 | .488 | .402 |
| 2023-24 | 82 | 23.4 | 8.0 | 2.0 | 2.5 | .439 | .391 |
| 2024-25 | 82 | 25.3 | 9.4 | 3.2 | 2.7 | .438 | .381 |
| 2025-26 | 78 | 33.4 | 20.8 | 3.4 | 3.7 | .459 | .399 |
| Career | 421 | 23.9 | 11.1 | 2.7 | 2.7 |
The Lab
Every number, live and interactive. Real career data; models labeled.
Are the Atlanta Hawks built to win?
Team projection rolled up from the roster + last-season baselines — and what it means for his role.
The Ballad of Nickeil Alexander-Walker
Birth to now — the making of a legend, narrated and scored.
The beginning
The 3-and-D role player who became the 2026 Most Improved Player — and, yes, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's cousin.
Turning pro
Drafted 17th overall, 2019 as a Guard.
true
A six-year role player and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's cousin — who suddenly became a 20-point scorer and Most Improved Player.
Chapter
Born in Toronto, he shared a prep-school room with his cousin Shai, starred at Virginia Tech, and was drafted 17th in 2019.
Chapter
For six seasons — New Orleans, Utah, Minnesota — he was a 3-and-D role player, valued for defense and spot-up shooting.
Off the court
- Height
- 6' 5"
- Weight
- 205 lbs
- College
- Virginia Tech
- Experience
- 7th Season
- NBA debut
- 2019
- Draft
- 17th overall, 2019
- Born
- Toronto, Canada
- Age
- 28
- Jersey
- #7
Basketball runs in the family: Alexander-Walker is the first cousin of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and the two grew up close — sharing a room at their Tennessee prep school and pushing each other in the gym. That both became NBA standouts, and now face each other as opponents, is one of the sport's better family stories.
His own path was patient — six seasons as a role player before the breakout — and his identity was built on defense and shooting before he ever became a scorer. The 2026 Most Improved award, and his place as the first Canadian to win it, capped a slow-burn rise that mirrors the broader wave of Canadian talent his cousin helped lead.
A patient, two-way guard who turned a role-player skill set into a 20-point breakout.
Nickeil Alexander-Walker — frequently asked
The questions people ask most about Nickeil Alexander-Walker, answered.
