Archive for September, 2012

Vivlamore reporting.

Individual game tickets for the 2012-13 preseason and regular season games through Feb. 8, 2013 are on sale now.

Single-game tickets for the second half of the season, beginning with the Feb. 20, 2013 match-up against the Heat following the All-Star break, will go on-sale Dec. 10. Tickets for the first half of the season are available at www.hawks.com, by calling 1-866-715-1500 or at the Philips Arena box office or Ticketmaster outlets. For the second straight year, all ticketing fees have been eliminated.

Games for the entire 2012-13 season can be purchased through a season ticket, flex plan or group ticket package at the www.hawks.com/tickets or by calling 1-866-715-1500.

The 41-game regular-season home schedule begins Nov. 2 against the Houston. Other notable opponents at Philips Arena include the Celtics (Jan. 5 and Jan. 25), Joe Johnson and the Nets (Jan.16 and March 9), the Bulls (Dec. 22 and Feb. 2), the Clippers (Nov. 24), the Lakers (March …

Continue reading Single-game tickets for first half of season on sale »

Vivlamore reporting.

SportSouth will televise 75 of the 82 Hawks games during the 2012-13 NBA season, all in high definition. The network will air the season opener on Nov. 2 against the Rockets at Philips Arena.

Former Hawks star and Hall of Famer Dominique Wilkins returns for his fifth straight season as the Hawks game analyst. Play-by-play announcer Bob Rathbun returns for his 17th season. Jerome Jurenovich will serve as the sideline reporter.

Before and after every televised game, SportSouth will air a 30-minute pre- and post-game segment. Andre Aldridge will host and Mike Glenn will be the analyst.

- Chris Vivlamore

Continue reading SportSouth to televise 75 Hawks games »

Vivlamore reporting.

The Hawks re-signed restricted free agent Ivan Johnson Tuesday. 

The Hawks extended Johnson a qualifying offer this summer to retain salary-matching rights if he had signed an offer sheet with another team. Under NBA rules, Johnson’s offer was for one year and worth about $966,000 guaranteed. The offer, unless extended, would have expired on Oct. 1.

Last season, as a rookie, Johnson averaged 6.4 points, 4.0 rebounds and 16.7 minutes in 56 games off the bench. The forward led the Hawks with a .513 field goal percentage.

The 28-year-old tied for sixth among NBA rookies with three double-doubles. He was third in field goal percentage, 14th in rebounds and 18th in points for first-year players. He was named the Rookie of the Month for April in the Eastern Conference.

Johnson was a surprise addition to Atlanta’s roster last season after a strong training camp.He had his career derailed by a wayward college career and anger-management issues, …

Continue reading Hawks re-sign Ivan Johnson »

Vivlamore reporting.

The Hawks requested waivers on Jordan Williams Monday.

Williams, a 6-foot-10 forward, was obtained from Brooklyn as part of the July 11th trade for Joe Johnson. Last season with the Nets he averaged 4.6 points, 3.6 rebounds and 14.8 minutes in 43 games. The Nets selected Williams in the second round of the 2011 draft out of Maryland.

There was a buyout component to the roster move. The Hawks now have 13 guaranteed contracts, including Ivan Johnson and Mike Scott. The Hawks are allowed 15 guaranteed contracts so there remains some roster flexibility. They could use the flexibility to add a player now or wait should a need or a trade arise during the season.

- Chris Vivlamore

Continue reading Hawks request waivers on Jordan Williams (updated) »

Back when Hawks coach Larry Drew added assistants Kenny Atkinson and Bob Weiss to join Lester Conner and Bob Bender, Drew said his staff was “set” for 2012-13.

But, according to a report out of Russia that was translated by Eurohoops.com, Drew is in Israel to meet with Maccabi Tel Aviv coach David Blatt. According to Eurohoops, Blatt recently signed a three-year contract with Maccabi but has a “turbulent relationship” with the club’s management.

UPDATE: Hawks GM Danny Ferry confirms that Drew is not seeking to add Blatt to his staff but went to Maccabi’s camp to observe, learn and share ideas with Blatt.

“Larry respects the international game and is enjoying the opportunity to share ideas with David Blatt,” Ferry wrote in a text message. “David is a heckuva coach and I know that Larry appreciates that David has been so open. I know Larry is enjoying the opportunity to closely watch [Maccabi's] program. It is a highly respected program.”

Blatt is an American native who played …

Continue reading Atlanta Hawks: Larry Drew studying with Euro coach David Blatt »

The Hawks invited free agent Damion James to veteran’s camp and the forward’s agent told Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports that he plans to accept.

James, like free agent James Anderson, will join the Hawks on a summer contract that would become a non-guaranteed one-year deal if he makes the roster. James and Anderson will compete to fill the role of defensive-minded wing that Hawks GM Danny Ferry is seeking.

The Hawks selected James with the No. 24 overall pick in the 2010 draft and traded him that night to New Jersey for guard Jordan Crawford. James, 24, played in just 32 games for the Nets and had his 2011-12 season cut short by a foot injury that eventually required surgery.

“I’m excited for the opportunity that Damion has to show people that kind of player he was going to be before the foot injury,” agent Mark Bartelstein told Wojnarowski. “He’s healthy now, and this is an ideal situation for him in Atlanta.”

The Hawks currently have 12 players signed to guaranteed …

Continue reading Atlanta Hawks: Free agent Damion James gets camp invite »

The Hawks today signed rookie forward Mike Scott, their second-round pick in the June draft.

Scott signed a two-year contract for the minimum salary that includes some guarantees, according to Hawks GM Danny Ferry. The minimum salary for 2012-13 is $473,604.

“Mike will be on the team this year,” Ferry wrote in a text message.

Today is the deadline for teams to at least extend a required tender to second-round draft picks in order to retain their rights.

Scott, 24, was the No. 43 overall draft pick and Atlanta’s second selection behind guard John Jenkins. Scott figures to benefit from the Hawks’ efforts to strengthen their player-development program but he’s not projected to play much in 2012-13.

When the Hawks drafted Scott, GM Danny Ferry said he’s strictly a power forward. That means Scott is slotted behind Josh Smith, Al Horford, Zaza Pachulia, Ivan Johnson, Jordan Williams and perhaps Johan Petro in the frontcourt rotation.

Michael Cunningham, Hawks …

Continue reading Atlanta Hawks: Rookie draft pick Mike Scott signs contract »