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Atlanta Hawks’ Sale Still On Track

By Adam McGee

Jan 25, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Hawks mascot Harry Hawk waves a flag before a game against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Philips Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 25, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Hawks mascot Harry Hawk waves a flag before a game against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Philips Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports /
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It feels like a long time ago since the racism scandal that embroiled the Atlanta Hawks‘ offseason. A lot has happened since then, and thankfully for the franchise, it’s happened mostly on the court.

The team won 19 straight games, had four All-Star players, as well as the coaching staff and a Rising Star represent them in New York City, and now as we approach March they sit proudly atop the Eastern Conference.

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So, why then has it gone all quiet on the ownership front? The team is up for sale, and lets be honest, right now who wouldn’t want to own these Hawks?

Well, first and foremost, the talk of prospective buyers having quietened down is probably one of the most striking signs that the process has moved to a more advanced stage.

We’re no longer at the point where former players or celebrities can frivolously throw their hat in the ring as a means of boosting their profile or stroking their ego. Instead it’s now all about letting the propositions, and of course the money, do the talking.

According to Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Tuesday marked the deadline for preliminary bids to buy the team. Although there’s nothing binding about this stage of the process, it represents a more official intent and interest in purchasing the Hawks.

The sale process is being managed by investment management firm Goldman Sachs, and Inner Circle Sports, an investment bank specializing in the sports industry.

Vivlamore suggests that although the initial timeline of an April completion now seems unrealistic, a completed purchase by May or June seems like a strong possibility.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver is quoted in that same piece as saying:

“That (the sale) has moved along the course that we expected. There are several very interested parties that are looking at the team. It is on schedule.”

Who could those interested parties be though?

In the early stages of the process a number of parties publicly stated their interest,  yet whether that has materialized into something more concrete at this stage in the process is a very different question.

Atlanta Hawks
Atlanta Hawks /

Atlanta Hawks

Chris Webber was one of the first NBA faces to publicly throw his name into the ring, and although he would only have a minor involvement in terms of financial investment, Yahoo! Sports reported that he would be interested in getting involved in the basketball side of the franchise.

Grant Hill was another former player who expressed interest in the team, according to NBC Sports Pro Basketball Talk, and alongside fellow ex-professional Junior Bridgeman and the storied NBA father and son duo of Jerry and Bryan Colangelo, makes up a group that on paper anyway seems to hold real clout.

According to CBS Sports another potential ownership group comes in the form of Memphis Grizzlies vice chairman Steve Kaplan, and former Grizzlies CEO Jason Levien. Combining with wealthy magnates from across the world of sports, and notable Atlantans such as Braves legend Hank Aaron, they would seem like another group with a plausible bid, as long as the numbers hold up.

The thing about processes like this one though is that the successful party could still possibly come like a bolt out of the blue.

I guess we’ll just have to watch closely over the coming months and see what happens.

Next: Should Elton Brand Get More Minutes?

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