Collins appeared in all 31 of his team's game during his freshman year. He led the team in field goal accuracy at 54.7%. As a starter his sophomore year, Collins led the team in scoring with 19.2 points per game. His performance earned him recognition as the ACCMost Improved Player and he was named first-team all-ACC. After the season Collins entered the 2017 NBA Draft, forgoing his final two years of eligibility.
Professional career
Atlanta Hawks (2017–present)
On June 22, 2017, Collins was selected with the nineteenth overall pick in the 2017 NBA draft by the Atlanta Hawks. On July 1, 2017, he signed a rookie-scaled deal with the Hawks. During the 2017 NBA Summer League, he earned All-Summer League First Team honors due to his performances with the Hawks, which gave him averages of 15.4 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 1.0 assists per game in 23.1 minutes of action in the five games he played there. His highlight play was him dunking on Pelicans center Cheick Diallo. Collins later saw action in all five preseason games for the Hawks, coming off the bench with per game averages of 7.6 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 0.6 assists in 19.2 minutes. On October 22, 2017, in his third ever NBA game, Collins recorded his first career double-double with 14 points and 13 rebounds in a 116–104 loss to the Brooklyn Nets. He followed it up the very next night with another double-double performance against the Miami Heat, getting 14 points and 11 rebounds in a 104–93 loss. Due to an injury to Luke Babbitt, Collins played 36 minutes and scored a career high 21 points in a 96–85 losing effort to the San Antonio Spurs on November 20, 2017. With Babbitt still sidelined, Collins drew his first career start two days later against the Los Angeles Clippers. Although the Hawks ended up losing 116–103, he impressed with 14 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, and 4 steals in a career high 38 minutes. Late in the November 30 loss against the Cleveland Cavaliers, Collins suffered a shoulder injury and was expected to be out for 2 to 3 weeks. He made his return on December 14 to play the Detroit Pistons, missing a total of six games. By the trade deadline on February 8, 2018, the Hawks had a losing record of 17–37. With the postseason out of reach, Collins saw an increase in minutes and made his fifth start of the season on February 14 in a rematch with the Pistons. Other than two missed games in March due to an ankle injury, he started for the Hawks the rest of the season. Although Atlanta managed just 24 wins, Collins had a solid rookie campaign, averaging 10.5 points and 7.3 rebounds on 57.6% shooting with 11 double-doubles. On May 22, 2018, he was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team. On January 23, 2019, John Collins recorded a career high 35 points in a 121–101 win over the Chicago Bulls. On April 10, 2019, John Collins scored 20 points and recorded a career-high 25 rebounds in a 135–134 loss to the Indiana Pacers in the Hawks' season finale. On November 5, 2019, Collins was suspended by the NBA for 25 games without pay for violating the league's anti-drug policy. He tested positive for pralmorelin, a growth hormone-releasing peptide 2. On December 23, 2019, Collins returned from his suspension and recorded a double-double scoring 27 points and grabbing 10 rebounds in a 121–118 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. On February 22, 2020, John Collins tied his career high in points scoring 35 points and grabbing 17 rebounds in a 111–107 win against the Dallas Mavericks.
