Much like the Sacramento Kings, the Atlanta Hawks have traveled around the country, starting in the Midwest in 1946 and moving until finally finding a home in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1968. They play their home games in Philips Arena in Atlanta. Their head coach is Mike Woodson.

Tri-Cities Blackhawks

The Hawks were originally known as the Tri-Cities Blackhawks. They were part of the old National Basketball League and became one of the original members of the National Basketball Association.

After two years in the NBA (they made the playoffs one year and missed the next) the Blackhawks moved to Milwaukee and became the Hawks.

Milwaukee Hawks

The Milwaukee franchise struggled in its four seasons in Wisconsin. From 1951 to 1955, they averaged around 23 wins and failed to make the playoffs.

In 1955 the team moved to St. Louis, Missouri.

St. Louis Hawks

The move to St. Louis seemed to agree with the Hawks. They made the playoffs their first year there, and made it all the way to the division finals, where they fell to the Fort Wayne Pistons.

Two years later, the St. Louis Hawks won the first and only championship in the history of the franchise. Led by coach Alex Hannum, the team beat the Boston Celtics in six games.

The team continued to enjoy success in St. Louis, missing the playoffs only once between 1955 and 1968. Wanting a new arena but rebuffed by the city, the Hawks moved to Atlanta in 1968.

Atlanta Hawks

The Atlanta Hawks made the playoffs their first five seasons in Georgia, then suffered a four-year drought. Returning to the playoffs in 1978, the Hawks enjoyed moderate success. But their fortunes changed in 1982.

The Human Highlight Film

In 1982 the Hawks acquired high-flying forward Dominique Wilkins from the Utah Jazz, who drafted Wilkins earlier that year. Wilkins, known as the “Human Highlight Film” for his acrobatic, flashy dunks, led the Hawks to four 50-win seasons, but they never made it to the conference finals during his tenure with the Hawks.

Midway through the 1993-94 season, the Hawks traded Dominique Wilkins to the Los Angeles Clippers for Danny Manning, who left shortly thereafter via free agency.

The team had a couple of 50-win seasons after Dominique, but they suffered a long, slow slide to the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings, from which they have only begun to recover.

2007-08 Season

In the Western Conference, the Hawks never would have made the playoffs with a 37-45 record. But in the East, that was good enough for a Number Eight seeding in the postseason. Led by Joe Johnson, Al Horford, and point guard Mike Bibby (acquired midseason in a trade with the Sacramento Kings), the Hawks took the eventual-champion Boston Celtics to seven games before losing in the first round.

2008-09 Outlook

Under the leadership of coach Woodson, and with a young nucleus consisting of Horford and Johnson, things could be looking up for the Atlanta Hawks. Bolstered by how well they played the Celtics, their confidence could translate into their first .500-plus season since 1997.

Greatest Players

Bob Petit, Connie Hawkins, Moses Malone, Pete Maravich, Lenny Wilkens, Dominique Wilkins

The Utah Jazz is, quite possibly, the most oddly juxtaposed team name in sports (the mention of the state of Utah does not inspire visions of jazz bands). The team is also one of the most consistently successful franchises in the NBA. In the late 1980s and 1990s, they were playoff perennials, and they have recently regained their status as a tough Western Conference contender. They play their home games at Energy Solutions Arena in Salt Lake City.

Early Years

The Jazz began their NBA life in New Orleans, La., in 1974. As an expansion team, they didn’t win many games, but with high-scoring, flamboyant guard “Pistol” Pete Maravich, they were always entertaining to watch.

The team moved to Salt Lake City in 1979 and decided to keep the name “Jazz” even though the region was hardly known for its jazz music.

John Stockton and Karl Malone

Two draft picks in the mid-1980s helped cement the Jazz’ success for years to come. The team drafted point guard John Stockton out of Gonzaga University in 1984, followed by brick-solid power forward Karl Malone (Louisiana Tech) in 1985. Together, they ran one of the game’s oldest offensive plays, the pick and roll, to such perfection that it was nearly impossible to stop. Teams knew the pick and roll was coming, because it was the basis of the Utah offense. But try as they might, they could not shut it down. The names “Stockton and Malone” became a package deal; you didn’t hear one name without the other. The two greats would both go on to join the list of the “NBA’s 50 Greatest Players.” Though some might debate the whether certain names belong on that list, no one can dispute Stockton and Malone, who are considered by some to be the best point guard and power forward in the history of professional basketball.

NBA Finals Appearances

Several teams – in both the Eastern and Western conferences – have had the misfortune of playing in the Michael Jordan era. The Jazz, who were one of the best teams in the West for much of the 1990s, can rightfully claim such misfortune. During their two NBA Finals seasons, they could arguably have beaten any other team in the league except Jordan’s Chicago Bulls.

In 1996-97, the Jazz were dominant, posting a 64-18 record and breezing through the Eastern Conference playoffs. They only lost three games in beating the L.A. Clippers, L.A. Lakers, and Houston Rockets. Malone won the regular-season MVP, but he couldn’t get his team past the Bulls and Jordan, the Finals MVP. The Bulls won in six games, two of which went down to the final seconds.

In the 1997-98 season, the Jazz were dominant again despite losing John Stockton to a knee injury for nearly 20 games. Again they only lost three games on their way to the Finals, beating the Rockets, the San Antonio Spurs, and the Lakers. Again they lost to the Bulls in six games. Game Six of that Finals series is remembered for Jordan’s game-winning shot in the final seconds. The Bulls won that game, 87-86. The Jazz have not appeared in the NBA Finals since.

2007-08 Season

The roster is new, but the coach, Jerry Sloan, remains the same. The team’s hard-nosed approach to the game has not changed, either.

Stockton and Malone, both retired, have given way to Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer. Andrei Kirilenko and sharpshooter Kyle Korver help round out the roster.

After a 54-28 regular season, the Jazz defeated the Houston Rockets, 4-2, in the first round of the playoffs. They lost the conference semifinals in six games to the eventual West champion L.A. Lakers.

2008-09 Outlook

With the nucleus of Olympians Williams and Boozer, along with Kirilenko, the Jazz have high expectations entering the 2008-09 season. They were just a couple of victories away from defeating the Lakers in the playoffs, and in Williams and Boozer they boast two of the NBA’s best young players. If that duo continues to evolve, the Utah Jazz will make noise on the playoffs for years to come.