1985-1986 Atlanta Hawks: Highlight-Filled

1985-1986 Atlanta Hawks: Highlight-Filled

1985-1986 Atlanta Hawks: Highlight-Filled

The Atlanta Hawks had teams throughout the 1980’s that were solid enough to contend in the Eastern Conference, and more often than not the Hawks were able to hang around other great teams in their conference such as the Boston Celtics, New York Knicks and the Detroit Pistons. Many basketball fans can say that the Atlanta Hawks of the 1980’s were a highlight-filled franchise that had players who were very entertaining to see play.

In the 1985-1986 NBA regular season the Atlanta Hawks went 50-32, finishing 7 games behind the Milwaukee Bucks in the Central Division. The Hawks went 34-7 at their home called The Omni while going only 16-25 on the road. In divisional play the Hawks were very solid as they went 21-9. The Hawks went 5-1 against the Chicago Bulls and the Indiana Pacers and they went 4-2 against the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Detroit Pistons.

Small forward Dominique Wilkins was appropriately nicknamed “The Human Highlight Reel” as he could pull off all sorts of dazzling dunks whenever he broke away from the opposition. Wilkins had 2,366 points with 618 rebounds, 206 assists and 138 steals. Wilkins made 888 of 1,897 field goal attempts, 577 of 705 free throws and 13 of 70 three-point shots. The tremendous quality of play from Wilkins earned him All-NBA First Team honors.

Shooting guard Randy Wittman had 1,043 points with 306 assists and 81 steals, making 467 of 881 field goal attempts and 104 of 135 free throws. Power forward Kevin Willis had 1,010 points with 704 rebounds, making 419 of 811 field goal attempts and 172 of 263 free throws. Power forward Cliff Levingston had 752 points, making 294 of 551 field goal attempts and 164 of 242 free throws.

Center Wayne “Tree” Rollins had 415 points and pulled down 458 rebounds while also having 167 blocks. Rollins made 173 of 347 field goal attempts. Center Jon Koncak had 682 points while making 263 of 519 field goal attempts and 156 of 257 free throws. Point guard Glenn Anton Rivers, who is better known as “Doc”, had 612 points with 443 assists and 120 steals, making 220 of 464 field goal attempts and 172 of 283 free throws.

Point guard Anthony Jerome Webb, who would be better known as “Spud”, was only 5’6” in height, but he was so athletic and had extraordinary jumping ability that he could dunk the basketball. Webb would only complement Dominique Wilkins in providing highlight reel content for the Atlanta Hawks. Webb had 616 points in his rookie season along with 337 assists ad 82 steals, making 216 of 275 free throws.

When the regular season drew close to an end, the Hawks picked their spot in having an impressive winning streak. This winning streak spanned 7 games long, and it started with a 116-108 win over the San Antonio Spurs on March 1. This streak would end with a 113-97 victory over the New Jersey Nets on March 12.

The 1st Round of the Eastern Conference playoffs certainly wasn’t an easy task for the Atlanta Hawks as they had to deal with a familiar Central Division rival in the Detroit Pistons, a team that wouldn’t be far from tearing through the NBA with their iconic “Bad Boy Pistons” rough style of play. The Pistons weren’t yet the Bad Boys in 1986, however, as the Hawks downed them 3 games to 1 in this series.

In Game 1 on April 17 at The Omni the Hawks beat the Pistons 140-122. For the Pistons center Bill Laimbeer had 26 points and 17 rebounds while making 10 of 18 field goal shots and 6 of 6 free throws. Point guard Isiah Thomas had 20 points with 16 assists and 3 steals. Small forward Kelly Tripucka had 19 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists. For the Hawks Dominique Wilkins led the way with 28 points while making 10 of 10 free throws. Kevin Willis had 22 points and 6 rebounds. Doc Rivers had 17 points and distributed the basketball effectively with 16 assists.

In Game 2 on April 19 the Hawks defeated the Pistons 137-125. Thomas led the Pistons in scoring with 36 points and had 9 assists. Laimbeer had 23 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, making 6 of 6 free throws. Atlanta had a ferocious charge of offense orchestrated by The Human Highlight Reel himself. Dominique Wilkins scored an amazing 50 points while making 19 of 28 field goal shots and 12 of 15 free throws. Randy Wittman was influential in this offensive charge as he had 35 points, making 16 of 25 field goal shots. Spud Webb had 19 points, 7 rebounds and 18 assists while making 13 of 16 free throws.

The Pistons would take Game 3 on April 22 at the Pontiac Silverdome by the score of 106-97. Needing to bounce back the Hawks would pull off an amazingly close victory in Game 4 on April 25 to close out the Pistons. The Hawks won the game by the score of 114-113 in double overtime. Thomas had 30 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists for Detroit. Laimbeer had 27 points and 13 rebounds. Tripucka had 24 points and 8 rebounds. For Atlanta Wilkins continued to amaze by having 38 points and 8 rebounds. Wittman had 29 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists.

The Eastern Conference Semifinals would be the end of the line for the Hawks as they would fall 4 games to 1 to a team that had been built to become an NBA Championship dynasty in the 1980’s, the Boston Celtics. The only game the Hawks would win happened to be Game 4 on May 4 at The Omni. The Hawks beat the Celtics 106-94. Boston had offensive production come from players like power forward Kevin McHale, who had 26 points and 12 rebounds. Small forward and power forward Larry Bird had 20 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists while making 10 of 10 free throws. Dominique Wilkins once again led the offensive charge for Atlanta as he had 37 points with 9 rebounds and 5 assists while making 15 of 15 free throws. Spud Webb gave Wilkins some backup as he had 21 points with 6 rebounds and 12 assists.

Head Coach Mike Fratello would be honored by the NBA by winning the Coach of the Year Award, and Stan Kasten would be named the NBA Executive of the Year. The Atlanta Hawks would continue to contend in the Eastern Conference throughout the 1980’s.