Each NBA team’s most clutch player of all-time

Most clutch player in Atlanta Hawks history: Dominique Wilkins

The Atlanta Hawks do not have a storied history of clutch moments, largely because the team’s only title came in 1958, and they have not been closer than eight wins to the title for the past 50 years. That does not mean that they did not have clutch players.

Dominique Wilkins, the franchise’s all-time leading scorer, was known during his career as the “Human Highlight Reel” due to his flashy scoring prowess. The Hall of Fame player was a part of the Hawks’ strongest run since that ’50s team, pushing against the Boston Celtics’ stranglehold on the Eastern Conference twice in the late 1980s.

Key Moment: In Game 7 of the 1988 Eastern Conference Semifinals, the Atlanta Hawks were attempting to knock Larry Bird and the Celtics from their throne. Wilkins stepped up to the challenge, doing what few players in the league could ever do — hang with Bird shot-for-shot.

Wilkins scored 47 points in a game known as “The Duel” to will his Hawks towards a victory. In the 4th quarter he and Bird traded baskets back-and-forth. While in the end the more talented and experienced Celtics prevailed, Wilkins showed the world that on the biggest stage, in the most clutch moment in modern franchise history, he was up to the challenge.