The Atlanta Hawks landed in Atlanta, Georgia in 1968. In their previous incarnations the Hawks played as the Tri-Cities Blackhawks (1946-47-1950/51), the Milwaukee Hawks 1951/52-1954/55, and the St. Louis Hawks 1955/56-1967/68. Arriving in Atlanta, the Hawks proceeded to post a solid season, with a record of 48-34 and a 2nd place finish in their division. The postseason brought a 6-game series win over the San Diego Rockets, but ended when the Hawks ran into the Lakers and lost in a 5-game series.
1970 saw the Hawks draft a young gun from LSU known as “Pistol” Pete Maravich. Maravich was the NCAA’s leading scorer and brought an element of style to the Hawks. Fans loved his anything-can-happen style of play that featured behind-the-back passes and ball handling skills never before seen in the NBA. Maravich finished the season as the Hawks second leading scorer with over 23 points per game and helped the team to a 36-46 record. Although they finished in 2nd place and made the playoffs, the Hawks were knocked out in the first round by the New York Knicks. The same scenario occurred for the next few seasons as Maravich and Lou Hudson dominated the team’s scoring, but failed to get the Hawks past the first round of the playoffs. In 1974, Maravich was traded to the New Orleans Jazz, returning him to his home state of Louisiana.
In the 90’s, the Atlanta Hawks showed some promise but failed to deliver on expectations. Dominique Wilkins was a star player for Atlanta, but suffered an Achilles tendon injury in the 1991-92 season that effectively ended the Hawks’ chances to reach the playoffs. Returning the next season, Wilkins play still suffered. Although the Hawks managed to reach the NBA Playoffs as a 7th seed in 1993 with a 12-3 record in the month of March, their playoff run was short lived as the Chicago Bulls knocked them out in the first round in a 3-game sweep. A barrage of player changes and coaching changes got the Hawks to the second round of the playoffs in 1997, where the Chicago Bulls eliminated them in the 2nd round.
The key to the Hawks future lies in the development of the younger players and the additions of some key veterans. The fans that fill Philips Arena are still waiting for the young crop of players to bear fruit and make Hawks tickets a hot item in the NBA.
The 2007-2008 The Atlanta Hawks lost in the first round of the NBA Playoffs and Billy Knight resigned as the General Manager. Knight said it was time to "take a break" following a season when his authority appeared to be weakened by unsuccessful lobbying with owners to fire coach Mike Woodson. The Atlanta Hawks changed their colors and uniforms to navy blue, red and white, which marks the first time since their days in St. Louis that they wore those colors. The team drafted Center Al Horford and 6’3” Point Guard Acie Law in the 2007 NBA Draft and hired Rick Sund as the new General Manager. The Hawks have eliminated the Miami Heat in the first round of the 2008/09 NBA Playoffs and look to take on the powerhouse Cleveland Cavaliers en route to the NBA Finals.
