Atlanta Hawks

Team information

• Inaugural season: 1946
• Home arena: State Farm Arena, Atlanta, Georgia
• Owner: Tony Ressler
• Team colors: Torch red, volt green, and granite gray

Overview

The Atlanta Hawks is a professional basketball team that plays in the National Basketball Association’s (NBA) Eastern Conference. The Hawks were formed in the Midwest in 1946 and joined the NBA in 1949. After bouncing between Milwaukee and St. Louis for much of the 1950s and 1960s, the franchise moved to Atlanta in 1968. Despite playing in the NBA for more than seventy years, the Hawks have won only one NBA championship, and that was from its days in St. Louis. Since moving to Atlanta, the Hawks have mostly struggled, advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals just once. In 1982, the team drafted the franchise’s best player, Dominique Wilkins, whose electrifying style earned him the nickname the “Human Highlight Film.”

History

The history of the Atlanta Hawks stretches back to 1946 when the team was known as the Tri-Cities Blackhawks and played in the National Basketball League (NBL). At this time, it was owned by Ben Kerner and Leo Ferris. Three cities near the Mississippi River shared the team: Moline, Illinois; Rock Island, Illinois; and Davenport, Iowa. The Tri-Cities Blackhawks played for three seasons before the National Basketball Association (NBA) was founded. After this, it became one of seventeen teams to join the NBA as part of the merger between the National Basketball League (NBL) and the Basketball Association of America (BAA). It won its first game against the Denver Nuggets (not the current franchise) 93–85. However, it lost the next six games, and Head Coach Roger Potter was fired. Renowned coach “Red” Auerbach was hired in his place. After this, the team’s record was 28–29, which meant it made it to the playoffs. However, the Blackhawks lost to the Anderson Packers in the first round. Auerbach left after the 1949–1950 season.

The team went through three coaches during the 1950–1951 season: Dave McMillan, John Logan, and Mike Todorovich and finished at the bottom of the Western Division with a record of 25–43. Before the 1951–1952 season, Kerner moved the team to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and shortened its name to the Hawks. With a 17–49 record, the Hawks finished last in the Western Division.

In 1955, the franchise relocated again, this time to St. Louis, Missouri, where it attracted more fans. Before the 1954–1955 season, the team drafted Bob Pettit, a forward who played for Louisiana State University. Pettit helped the Hawks improve by a few games that season but they were still last in the division with 24–46. In the following season, though, Pettit won the 1955–1956 NBA Most Valuable Player Award. Halfway through this season, Kerner added Jack Coleman and Jack McMahon to the team, acquiring both from the Rochester Royals. The Hawks tied for second place in the Western Division that year with the Minneapolis Lakers. They advanced to the NBA finals but lost to the Boston Celtics in seven games.

The following year was different as the Hawks, powered by Pettit’s 24.6 points per game, defeated the Boston Celtics to win the NBA Championship in 1958. It would turn out to be the only championship in franchise history as of 2020. The Hawks also made the NBA Finals in 1960 and 1961, but lost both times.

In 1968, the team moved to Atlanta, where it shared Alexander Memorial Hall with Georgia Tech University. Kerner sold the franchise to Thomas Cousins, a real-estate developer, and Carl Sanders, the former governor of Georgia. Under head coach Richie Guerin, a former guard for the Knicks from 1956–1963, the Hawks improved their record to 48–36 and won its division the following year.

During the 1972–1973 season, the Hawks moved from Alexander Memorial Hall to the Omni, a new arena in Atlanta, and Lowell “Cotton” Fitzsimmons became head coach. Under his guidance, the Hawks had a 46–36 record. However, they won only 31 games during the next season and fewer in the two seasons after this. After Fitzsimmons was let go, Hubie Brown took over as head coach, but the team finished with a record of only 31–51.

In 1977, cable TV magnate Ted Turner, the founder of CNN, bought the team and remained its owner until 2001 when his business empire was bought out by Time Warner. In 2004, the team hung a banner at the Hawks’ arena to honor Turner and symbolically retired his jersey number.

The acquisition of Dominique Wilkins in 1982 marked the start of a turning point for the Atlanta Hawks. A colligate star at the University of Georgia, Wilkins was selected by the Utah Jazz with the third overall pick in the 1982 NBA Draft and later traded to Atlanta. He would go on to become the all-time leading scorer in franchise history.

Mike Fratello became the team’s head coach in 1983. Wilkins, along with several new players, helped the Hawks to a 50-win season in 1985–1986. During the 1986–1987 season, Wilkins continued to lead the Hawks in scoring, finishing second in the league to Michael Jordon. However, while the Hawks had 50 wins for four consecutive years, the team was unable to win an NBA title and Fratello was replaced by Bob Weiss.

The Hawks received significant recognition for their achievements during the 1990s. During the 1992–1993 season, Wilkins became the Hawks’ all-time leading scorer. Lenny Wilkens replaced Weiss as head coach in 1993 and was named NBA Coach of the Year. Guard Mookie Blaylock finished second in the league in steals during the 1994–1995 season and was named to the NBA all-defensive first team. New acquisition Dikembe Mutombo further strengthened the Hawks defense and won the NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award in 1996–1997.

In 1999–2000, the team moved into the Phillips Arena, which had seating for more than 18,000 fans. However, after finishing its worst season in franchise history, the team saw several head coach turnovers.

In 2004 the team was sold to Atlanta Spirit LLC and Mike Woodson became head coach. The Hawks improved over the next few seasons and made it back to the playoffs in 2008. That season began a streak of ten consecutive playoff appearances for the Hawks. In 2014–2015, the team posted a franchise-best 60 wins and advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals. However, as of 2020, the Hawks had not been back to the playoffs since the 2016–2017 season.

In 2015, the franchise was purchased by a group led by businessperson Tony Ressler for about $850 million. Since moving to Milwaukee, the franchise has various images of a hawk as its logo. In 2015, the team rebranded its logo to feature a red circular band design with the outline of a hawk’s profile in the center. Surrounding the image are the words Atlanta Hawks Basketball Club.

Notable players

Bob Pettit, the franchise’s first superstar, played for the Hawks from 1954 to 1965 and made the NBA All-Star team in each of his eleven seasons. As of early 2024, he remained second in franchise history with 20,880 points scored and was tied with Dominique Wilkins for highest points per-game average with 26.4. Pettit was the winner of the first NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) award when it was instituted in 1956 and won it again in 1959. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1970.

Wilkins is the team’s all-time leading scorer with 23,292 points and matched Pettit’s points-per-game average with 26.4. He played for the Hawks from 1982 to 1994, during which time he made eleven All-Star appearances. Known for his signature power dunks and flashy playing style, Wilkins was dubbed the “Human Highlight Film” and the face of the Hawks for most of the 1980s. At the 1988 All-Star Game, Wilkins faced off against Chicago Bulls’ superstar Michael Jordan in a legendary slam dunk contest in which both players showcased their athletic ability. Wilkins was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2006.

Pettit’s teammate Cliff Hagan, who made five All-Star appearances from 1958 to 1962, was elected into the Hall of Fame in 1978. Six-time All-Star Lou Hudson, who played for the Hawks from 1966 to 1977 and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2022, joined Pettit and Wilkins in having their jersey numbers retired by the team. Defensive specialist Dikembe Mutombo, who spent five of his nineteen seasons with the Hawks, also has had his number retired. For his career body of work, Mutombo was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2015. In 2017, the team retired Hall-of-Famer “Pistol” Pete Maravich’s number. Maravich played for the Hawks from 1970 to 1974.

Bibliography

“Atlanta Hawks.” Basketball Reference, 2024, www.basketball-reference.com/teams/ATL/. Accessed19 Mar. 2024.

“Atlanta Hawks Career Leaders.” Basketball Reference, 2024, www.basketball-reference.com/teams/ATL/leaders‗career.html. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

“Atlanta Hawks Team History.” Sports Team History, 2020, sportsteamhistory.com/atlanta-hawks. Accessed 26 Mar. 2020.

“A Franchise Rich With Tradition: From Pettit to ‘Pistol Pete’ to the ‘Human Highlight Film’.” NBA.com, 2020, www.nba.com/hawks/history/season-by-season-recaps.html#2. Accessed 26 Mar. 2020.

“Hawks Raise Banner To Honor Turner.” NBA.com, 2020, www.nba.com/hawks/news/hawks-raise-banner-honor-turner. Accessed 26 Mar. 2020.

Petkac, Luke. “The Origin Stories of Every NBA Team's Name.” Bleacher Report, 9 Feb. 2013, bleacherreport.com/articles/1523132-the-origin-stories-of-every-nba-teams-name#slide1. Accessed 26 Mar. 2020.

Spears, Marc J. “Dominique Wilkins on Michael Jordan and ‘The Greatest Dunk Contest of All Time’.” The Undefeated, 14 Feb. 2020, theundefeated.com/features/dominique-wilkins-michael-jordan-chicago-1988-slam-dunk-contest/. Accessed 26 Mar. 2020.

Wells, Adam. “Hawks Owner Tony Ressler Says He Was a ‘Schmuck’ When He First Bought Team.” Bleacher Report, 26 Oct. 2018, bleacherreport.com/articles/2802986-hawks-owner-tony-ressler-says-he-was-a-schmuck-when-he-first-bought-team. Accessed 26 Mar. 2020.