Jalen Johnson has now secured a long-term future with the Atlanta Hawks, as they agreed to a five-year, $150 million contract extension the day before their season opener. The deadline to get the rookie contract extensions in was at 6 p.m., and apparently, the Hawks got the offer in at the last minute, according to ESPN's Bobby Marks.

“Jalen Johnson’s contract, I was told, was sent into the league office at 5:59 p.m., at the buzzer, to get in there,” Marks said on the Hoop Collective.

It's no surprise that the contract came in at the buzzer because ESPN's Shams Charania announced the deal around that time. Nonetheless, it's good that the Hawks got it in before the deadline because if not, they would've had to wait until the end of the season to get it done.

Quin Snyder reacts to Jalen Johnson's extension with Hawks

Brooklyn Nets forward Ziaire Williams (1) and Atlanta Hawks forward Jalen Johnson (1) fight for a rebound during the first half at State Farm Arena.
Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

Before the Hawks' game against the Brooklyn Nets, head coach Quin Snyder talked about Johnson and what it meant for him to hear Johnson give him praise about helping him.

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“It’s everything. It makes me emotional because it’s something that’s important to me, and when you have guys trust you and believe in them, but they believe in you too, and that’s not telling them the easy things, and he’s been so coachable,” Snyder said. 

“More often than not, I’m challenging him to do something, or encouraging him, or complimenting him, and there’s no question I do believe in him,” Snyder continued. “The fact that I know he’s going to work, I think the contract is great. It’s representative not only of what he’s done but what he’s capable of doing.”

The day before, Johnson mentioned how Snyder helped him to get where he is at this point of his career.

“He came in here, and he just told me and believed in me in a way that I would say a coach had never ever believed in me. A lot of coaches that l've had had said it, but for Quin to go out there and give me minutes at that time when it was tough, it meant a lot,” Johnson said.

Johnson started the season off with a solid stat line, finishing with 11 points, 10 rebounds, and four assists. He'll have better games throughout the season, and he'll be able to show all the things that he can do on both sides of the ball. Johnson will have a big role, and he'll be looked at as the No. 2 option on the team next to Trae Young. The Hawks believe that he can be that player, and Johnson knows that he can be that player.