The NBA 2K26 Summer League continues to heat up. The Atlanta Hawks defeated the Phoenix Suns 98-80 in Sunday's game, with rookie Asa Newell performing brilliantly and becoming the key to the team's victory.

Although his performance in the first half was mediocre, Newell only played for 11 minutes and scored 3 points, but he was in full swing in the second half, making 7 of 9 shots and 4 of 5 three-pointers, scoring a team-high 18 points and grabbing a game-high 11 rebounds, showing full efficiency and dominance.

Atlanta Hawks established a leading advantage in the first quarter and ended the first quarter with 30-17. Although Phoenix Suns regained their balance in the second quarter, they failed to effectively narrow the gap. Atlanta Hawks still held a 12-point lead at halftime.

Entering the third quarter, the Phoenix Suns once narrowed the gap to 6 points, and the game atmosphere was tense. However, the Atlanta Hawks regained their strength in the final quarter, limiting the Suns to only 14 points in the whole quarter through high-pressure defense, and successfully secured the victory.

In addition to Newell, the Atlanta Hawks had four players scoring in double figures. Jacob Toppin scored 15 points, 8 rebounds and 1 steal. Nikola Duricic contributed 16 points, 4 assists and played well on both offense and defense.

This game not only demonstrated the growth potential of the Atlanta Hawks' young players, but also made people look forward to Newell's performance in the coming season.