Amid Thrashers talk, we ask: Is Atlanta a lousy sports city?
Corporate synergy: Basketball mascot dances at hockey rally! (AJC photo by Hyosub Shin)
Should the Thrashers leave for Manitoba, ours would become the first American city to lose two NHL franchises. Word of the pending sale has spawned yet another round of Atlanta-is-a-lousy-sports-town boilerplate harrumphing, and again I pause to ask: Are we a lousy sports town?
The Thrashers were 28th among 30 NHL teams in attendance last season. The Hawks were 22nd among 30 NBA clubs. The 2010 Braves made the playoffs for the first time since 2005, and their attendance ticked upward from 15th to 13th among the 30 baseball teams. (The average Turner Field crowd grew by 1,685 year over year.)
Of note: The 2010 Falcons, who had the NFL’s second-best record, were 15th among 32 teams in attendance and 19th in capacity at 95.3 per cent. But the Falcons’ average gate was 67,850. Put it this way: Over their last full seasons, the average Braves, Hawks and Thrashers crowds together still fell 6,000 below the Falcons’ yield.
That’s instructive. Since 2004, Hawks and Thrashers fans have faced a shared dilemma: Do I buy tickets and support the team even if it means endorsing the maladroit Atlanta Spirit? Since 2007, the Braves have been owned by faceless Liberty Media of faraway Colorado. (Last week Liberty Media offered $1 billion to buy Barnes & Noble; the Braves’ payroll remains under $90 million.)
My point: The only local pro sports owner who inspires any confidence is Arthur Blank. We’re more inclined to support the Falcons because we believe they’re well run. About the other teams, it can be tough to know. Example: Frank Wren signed Derek Lowe to a four-year contract paying $60 million in January 2009 and was trying to dump him 10 months later. Another: The Hawks paid $120 million to keep Joe Johnson in the same summer they promoted Larry Drew to head coach at a cut-rate price.
My question: If we have qualms about a team’s management, are we wrong for keeping our money in our wallets? Isn’t that essentially what Americans do every election — vote our pocketbooks?
Addressing Thrashers fans, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said on a radio show Thursday: “I understand that there may be dissatisfaction [with ownership] there, but demonstrating your dissatisfaction by not going to games is an interesting strategy. It’s your absolute right. But if it becomes a turnoff for anybody who might want to buy the franchise, the long-term consequences could be severe.”
So Bettman’s recommendation would be to spend money on a bad product just so somebody else might come along and snap it up? In what solar system is he living?
News flash: Money’s tighter than it was in 2005, or in 2000, or in 1995. For a family of four, a game at Philips Arena can run more than $200. (A trip to Turner Field can be done for less.) At a time of lower income and higher prices, the issue becomes: Do we need to go watch this team play in person? For many Atlantans, the teams that meet that criterion tend to be based on college campuses.
Whenever I’m hit with the Atlanta-is-a-lousy-sports-town line, that’s my rebuttal: We might not be the best pro sports city, but we’re the absolute best for college football. All you need do is drive around the Perimeter on an autumn Saturday morning and you’ll see the festooned cars bearing Fulton and DeKalb and Cobb and Gwinnett plates headed for Athens and Auburn and Knoxville and Tuscaloosa and Clemson and Columbia and Tallahassee and Gainesville. (And yes, for North Avenue, too.)
Loading ...In our love for college football, we’re different from Boston or Philadelphia or New York or Miami or L.A. (Among big cities, Dallas would be the closest to us, but it’s not really close.) Our sporting priorities are those autumn Saturdays. As Gary Stokan, the president of the Chick-fil-A Bowl, says: “Our two biggest pro teams are Georgia and Georgia Tech.”
Last year I asked Michael Adams, Georgia’s president, how Sanford Stadium kept playing to capacity crowds in an uncertain economy. “For our folks,” he said, “[football tickets] are second to the mortgage.”
It would be nice if a pro team grabbed us by the lapels and made us care — the Braves did it in 1991, and the Falcons did it with Michael Vick — but that’s the job of the team. It’s not on us.
That more folks haven’t turned up to see the Thrashers lose doesn’t make us lousy civic stewards. Gary Bettman might not be happy with us, but he has to admit we’re savvy shoppers.
By Mark Bradley
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353 comments Add your comment
Randy
May 23rd, 2011
6:37 pm
As someone who lives 300 miles from Atlanta, I can offer an objective opinion – Atlanta is a pathetic professional sports city. Can’t excuse it by saying that Atlanta has a largely transplanted population, Atlanta has a history of poor support of it’s teams. An Atlanta team could play for a professional championship, and the AJC headlines and radio talk shows would pay more attention to where a high school football player was thinking about playing in college. I can’t say my home of NC is any better, people here think that watching cars driven in circles in a major sport. But if I want to visit a major sports city, I am better off driving 300 miles north than 300 miles south.
JSS
May 23rd, 2011
7:09 pm
@ Brendan…
There have been writers who have called for GM and even a few owners heads. The Denberg and Fratello warfare was savage. The Glanville and Herok tandem was savaged daily in the AJC.
Look, there needs to be some realistic tenor brought to the matter of what really comes next in this city. That silly Northside can cure all ills talk needs to be buried once and for all… Those people sound like those silly Orange County or Santa Clara County fans in California. Teams move to places like that playing demographic roulette. You can do that in football only slightly. The Jets were praying to get back into NY proper with the failed Olympic stadium proposal. Atlanta can hardly talk, we broke the hearts of two cities to gain the Braves and Hawks. So many people on these blogs misuse the term Karma. But, these teams are like the worst girlfriend/boyfriend you may have ever had. Sometimes you’re happy to have dodged the bullet; but knife wounds that a long time to heal!
Brad
May 23rd, 2011
7:45 pm
In my opinion, Atlanta is a terrible pro sports city. When the Braves went to the playoffs 14 straight seasons, I TWICE went to Turner Field and purchased tickets to a decisive Game 5 of a first round series 30 minutes before first pitch. One of those years included Barry Bonds the year he hit 73 homers. Another time, there were 15,000 empty seats for two NLCS games. That would not happen in any other city. The only excuse I ever got from Atlanta fans was “Well, we are always in the playoffs, so why should we care?” You should care b/c you call yourself a fan and making the playoffs is hard! I get why the Thrashers and Flames left, but it’s a shame. The Thrashers had a great product for entertainment and play in a beautiful venue. Yes, they could have won more, but that doesn’t mean that a night out isn’t any less fun for the casual fan. And please don’t hold the Falcons as some kind of beacon. Every time they struggle, tickets are incredibly easy to come by and seats are empty. That doesn’t happen in Denver, Chicago, or any other city that has great sports fans. The numbers above don’t lie. Atlanta is in the bottom half or third in attendance for every professional sport. Quit trying to spin it another way.
Scott
May 23rd, 2011
7:56 pm
Atlanta is not a bad sports town at all. I was born and raised in Atlanta and remember when the Braves came from Milwaukee in 1966 and the Falcons were born the same year. In 1968, Hawks arrived from St. Louis and we became a complete major league city.
Having watch all “our teams” since their arrivals, you have to remember that, even though the Braves and Hawks were good teams initially, they were not good teams in the 70’s and 80’s the majority of the time and the Falcons have just recently achieved back to back winning season for the first time in over 40 years.
You look at most cities attendance when their hometown teams are bad and you will find poor support wherever you look.
Atlanta has always shown good support of our teams whenever the product was worth watching…nothing different from any other town.
As far as the NHL goes, being a born Southerner and growing up back in the 60’s and 70’s…hockey was never a part of our region of the country, much less our town.
It’s too bad the Flames and Thrashers left, but personally, I never had an interest in either one of them…I hope we don’t try to get another hockey team…to me…2 was more than enough.
@G52gayPIMMs228
May 23rd, 2011
8:26 pm
Tool.
concerned mothers
May 23rd, 2011
8:35 pm
The Braves are boring now no key players I remember when we were the hottest team. Tickets to high, food to high no parking I really can’t name a player except chipper who need to retire because he stays hurt a lot now.
niremetal
May 23rd, 2011
8:36 pm
Atlanta is a bad pro sports city now, but it won’t be 20 years from now once the children of the transplants grow up. Right now, a clear majority of Atlanta’s population was born outside the metro area. It’s difficult to get people who didn’t grow up with a team to become loyal fans as adults; doubly so if they grew up actually rooting for another team in the same sport, as is the case with the transplants from New York.
Anyway, that’ll change in about 15-20 years once the “second generation Atlantans” come of age.
Puck
May 23rd, 2011
8:36 pm
Listen, 200 people show up for a ’save the Thrashers’ campaign and Thrashers owners send the friggin basketball mascot to the ‘rally’. On the other hand, just on a RUMOUR of the Thrashers coming to Winnipeg you get 4-500 people holding an impromptu rally at midnight in downtown Winnipeg. The writing is on the wall.
When I see all the fans above complaining about bad Hawks/Thrashers management I can see why – they can’t even send the right mascot to the rally. GO JETS GO
G52PlM228
May 23rd, 2011
8:40 pm
NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly appeared in an interview on The Illegal Curve Hockey Show Saturday morning. This quote caught the ear of Illegal Curve.
When asked on today’s show about the market potential of the city of Atlanta:
“I would acknowledge that Atlanta historically has been a difficult sports market, and I can’t exactly put my finger on it as to why that’s been the case. You make good points when you point to the fact that the Atlanta Braves make the playoffs 13 consecutive years in baseball, where it is a little more difficult to make the playoffs. And they are having difficulty selling out their home playoff games, which, you would think in most markets is unheard of. So, Atlanta has proven to be a very difficult market.”
niremetal
May 23rd, 2011
8:41 pm
The other side of the coin is that many people who DID grow up in Atlanta now live elsewhere, myself among them (born and raised in Atlanta, living in Philadelphia). The reason I’m not moving back anytime soon? Atlanta is no longer a great place to be a working parent, what with the hour-long commutes downtown and pathetically limited subway/regional rail system.
I’d be glad to move back (and buy Braves and Hawks season tickets) if they ever build a dedicated transit system that extends out to Cobb and Gwinnett so that the choice isn’t between “drive and sit and traffic for an hour” or “be unemployed.” But until then…
JSS
May 23rd, 2011
8:46 pm
“Being a born Southerner and growing up back in the 60’s and 70’s…hockey was never a part of our region of the country, much less our town.”
I love it when a certain segment of other native born of this region try to speak for every “Southermer!” So I was born in Macon, raised in demographic section of the “Southern culture” that the Thrashers never reached out to regardless of the fact that until the “Great Recession” tore through GA like a butter knife, it hosted more citizens with disposable income than any area outside of Southern California! My three favorite athletes were Bobby Orr, Ali, and Henry Aaron. The CBS and then ABC Hockey coverage of the NHL was a ritual at our house… The first place I went on a visit to Boston was not Fenway, it was for a Spring Break game played in the Garden and Bobby Orr rubbed my head on the way to the locker room after the pre-game skate. You make fans in their formative years. The AOL bunch and the ASG never got that point. I enjoyed every Flames I could see on WTCG. You can’t produce loyalty being closed minded and not being inviting to those who were beyond a perceived core!
JSS
May 23rd, 2011
8:52 pm
@ niremetal…
Co-sign both posts!
Jeff of reason...native.
May 23rd, 2011
9:09 pm
The fact is, I am an Atlanta Sports death-er-er. The current populous of transplants must die-pass on-kick-the-bucket-dirt-nap, etc., because, their kids are taking up the local teams…like it or not. As a fan of the Braves (held season tickets personally), Falcons (current STH), Hawks (attended games this season) and Thrashers (attended games this season). I, with a closet full of local gear, can particularly say that transplantism killed the Thrashers. Every game was filled with random local jackweeds in opposing jerseys coming to see their local team get beat.
The other three sports are harmed by and to a degree helped by it (short term rev). They can just survive it better. Since the Thrashers were new, only transplantorators came and wore their jersey to one to three games a year, for their favorite sport mind you, never making a commitment to the local franchise. In this case, I love the fact that those folks will be denied any local hockey. They diluted themselves and apparently love the sport 2nd, and some old jersey 1st.
I want the Thrashers to thrive and survive. I like going and my family does also. I loved it when they did the jersey exchange idea, although it was of no benefit to me. I once worried about this issue. I worried about converting folks. However, with two young kids I see the overwhelming switch happening and a consensus for the local teams in the next generation.
Now a final note:
Hey transplants, you are never, ever, ever, ever, ever, going back. Those days are dead and gone. They are so distant that they are not visible. You probably can’t financially afford to ever go back. Your continued support of your old team after relocating 20 years ago is stupid, and mostly selfishly about you, you, and you. Do you know how much ATL changed in that time?
Why do you walk around this city alienating yourself to the local population? Are you afraid of being a part of and building something great? The performance is even there with the teams given playoff participation. Think of what can be, if we are all pulling together.
Anit Spirit
May 23rd, 2011
9:38 pm
To all the Canadians who claim to be die hard fans NO matter what……any of you one of the few hundred a night watching the Expos for the last decade they played there???
Jeff
May 23rd, 2011
10:03 pm
Nothing wrong with Atlanta itself, the problem is that so many residents are transplants with pro-sports allegiances elsewhere (myself included!). Nobody moves to Cleveland for example so everyone there is die-hard Browns, Indians, and Cavs by default. In Atlanta you have fans from everywhere following their own teams and then also following the Atlanta teams IF they are winning. There’s no better college football city than Atlanta though!
Jeff
May 23rd, 2011
10:04 pm
One more thing…my kids were born in Atlanta and guess who they root for! Falcons, Braves, Thrashers, and Hawks. Give it one generation!
Joe D.
May 23rd, 2011
10:10 pm
First of all, please know the history of public transit in the metro area before you make dumba$$ statements about Atlanta. In 1970, five counties were invited to create a metro area public transit authority: Cobb, Gwinnett, Fulton, DeKalb, and Clayton (the county where the Atlanta Airport is located). The future population growth plan stated the metro area would have 2.5 million people in the year 2000. Atlanta reached 4 million. Cobb, Gwinnett, and Clayton all voted or refused to vote to become a part of what became MARTA. The fears expressed were RACE, taxation, and northerners relocating.
So instead of whinning about MARTA which up to the 1990 was considered one of the top transit systems in the country, the enlighten folks in Cobb, Gwinnett, and to a lesser degree Clayton should step up and make it happen.
Or shut the Hell up!
rally cap
May 23rd, 2011
10:26 pm
sports scientists will one day offer a theory to explain why the atlanta hawks mascot showed up at a rally for the thrashers, but no thrashers mascot. It could be deep.
ted rules!
May 23rd, 2011
10:27 pm
Get ted turner to buy the hawks and thrashers and he can hire a real GM who knows what he is doing! Maybe he can bring back jane for entertainment.
Lil Jay
May 23rd, 2011
11:26 pm
The City is great but the sports writers are sh!t, starting with Bradley ending with Cunningham, and let’s not forget Schultz. You guys never report you just give your opinions. You guys are the key to getting the City behind your teams but you bash your teams. You guys are part of the same fan base that chant MVP for opposing teams. You guys are jokes, so to answer the question the yes the city is a lousy sports city coupled with a team of lousy sports reporters.
jim
May 24th, 2011
4:50 am
ATL is a horribly bad town. I don’t live there but all you people ever do is bee otch about the marta system and complain about the product on the field and court. As a lifelong brave and hawk fan (who cares about the thrashers… hockey, really?) I would love to have the opportunity to go to a atl game but i live in the midwest. You guys got spoiled by the braves in the 90’s. The only sellouts at phillips are when lakers, heat and knicks. Then you boo smooth for being the best guy on the court for us (not named teague) in the playoffs!!!!? Boo horford when he holds the ball for 15 seconds mentally processing the game. Boo jj for dribbling 20 seconds and forcing a shot. I hope smooth goes somewhere and is appreciated. He isn’t perfect. And believe me the city of ATL is no where near perfect….
The Morning After: May 24, 2011 | The Victory Formation
May 24th, 2011
7:01 am
[...] The Thrashers are most likely leaving Atlanta. Does that make Atlanta a lousy sports town? [...]
David
May 24th, 2011
9:03 am
David F, the difference you speak of is very clear – It’s friggin’ Winnipeg! Of course you can get 35K out to a rally; it’s a lot warmer when you’re all standing next to each other. A 90-degree Saturday in Atlanta, on two days notice? Yeah, I can imagine the turnout being a bit lower than Winnipeg. For my part, I was on the golf course for a tee time I had booked before the rally was even announced. Man, what a terrible fan I must be.
MARC
May 24th, 2011
10:14 am
I DONT THINK ATLANTA IS A BAD SPORTS CITY, I JUST THINK ATLANTA MAKES BONE HEAD MISTAKES. AN EXAMPLE ON A BONE HEAD MISTAKE WAS ABOUT 5 YEARS AGO WITH THE HAWKS. RASHEEDA WALLACE WAS NOT THE BEST PLAYER IN THE LEAGUE, BUT HE WAS ELEMENT THAT ATLANTA IS NOT ACCUSTOM TO HAVING AND WHAT DO WE DO? WE TRADE HIM AS SOON AS WE GET HIM, REGARLESS OF THE TREMENDOUS IMPACT HE HAD IN THE ONE OR TWO GAMES HE ACTUALLY GOT TO PLAY HERE. PLAYERS LIKE RASHEEDA WOULD HAVE ATTRACTED HIGHER CALIBUR PLAYERS TO ATLANTA, ITS NOT ROCKET SCIENCE, IT’S JUST COMMON SENSE!
Truth2
May 24th, 2011
10:25 am
The Falcons are respectable, the Braves, they at least made it to the Ball (World Series) in their history. The Trashers-I don’t care. The Hawks-are a sideshow, a hyped up- so called highlight factory, unable to take seriously-the magnitude of what it takes to even hold a Naismith trophy (if they even know what it is). This team had two superstars in their history-(pg) Pistol Pete, (for those too young to remember), and (sf) Dominique, (this is where the “highlight” factory thing started-Dominique “the human highlight factory”. Although hall of famer, Nique is still with the Hawks organization-the dismal Hawks management sucks the life out of these fans and this city by continuing to romanticize about Josh Smith hyped up potential to fill Nique’s stature, shoes, etc., to their demise, in order to sell tickets. Josh isn’t going anywhere. Believe that.
ATLFAN
May 24th, 2011
10:37 am
Atlanta fans all they know is to complain. The team is not doing this.. the ownership is not doing that…the game is at the wrong time… the location is bad… Face it this is a fair weather fan town…. AND YES A VERY BAD PRO SPORTS TOWN.. all you have to do is go to a game when one of the bigger teams come… it looks like an away game. Frankly if you consider yourself an Atlanta fan you should be ashamed of yourselves. Don’t blame anyone else… Maybe If the Braves had a sellout crowds like Philly they could have spent more…. Maybe if more people showed up consistently to Philips Arena during the regular season the owners will have more to spend.
Stop complaining if you don’t support your teams. You are lucky to have these teams in ATL.
G52PlM228
May 24th, 2011
11:28 am
look at how fat atlantans are, there was no way anyone was going to march in a rally and burner calories
ryan
May 24th, 2011
11:36 am
The last world championship was 1995 when the Braves won it for Atlanta have not done anything sense but Atlanta is not a bad sports town Falcons fever has grown with them drafting Julio Jones and possibly bringing in a big FA Hawks just need a big time center like the home town star Dwight Howard .
ATLFAN
May 24th, 2011
12:25 pm
Ryan Just made my point for me…. The atlanta fans will go to see Julio Jones or Dwight Haward because they are the cool players to watch rather than supporting the teams… that is why this city will always be the bad sports town it is… I guess we will wait thntil the next Dwight Howard to support the Hawks… FYI I have enjoied the Hawks and Falcons season
PonGT
May 24th, 2011
12:39 pm
Atlanta is not a lousy sports city. On the contrary, Atlanta is a great sports town. Several years ago, my religious affiliation held its first and only International Convention in Atlanta, and we’ve never been back. Why? Because Atlanta is not a great convention city, but It’s a GREAT SPORTS CITY! Everything about the State Capital lends itself to accomodating sports enthusiasts, which brings me to the real reason Metro-Atlantans don’t support Hockey. We play football in the rain, sleet and snow. We play baseball in all kinds of inclement weather … and the same can be said for basketball. But only the most infinitesimal fools play hockey in Atlanta. It’s a YANKEE sport. So if people in Metro-Atlanta want a yankee sports team to fare well in Atlanta, then the transplanted yankees in Atlanta need to pack the place out in support of their sport.
G52PlM228
May 24th, 2011
1:13 pm
Atlanta is a disconnected metro… too sprawly and the mooks that live there won’t travel to see the local teams
end of story.
Born2Buzz
May 24th, 2011
1:20 pm
What makes a city a bad sports city? Not selling out every game of every sport? I think the fact that Atlanta has so many sports options available makes it a great sports city.
In addition to having all of the college teams close by, we also have a huge tennis and golf playing population that actually spends money to PLAY those games, year round.
I only have so much discretionary money to spend on sporting events. I support my college teams, like a lot of folks do, and I spend a good amount to play golf regularly. I don’t have the extra bucks to spend on watching bad hockey, or mediocre basketball and baseball. If these teams were big time winners I might reconsider. But they are not.
G52PlM228
May 24th, 2011
1:39 pm
like the braves ? they can’t sell out post season games…
LOL
good thing other cities support their teams better
Born2Buzz
May 24th, 2011
1:45 pm
I think last years Braves playoff games were both sellouts.
G52PlM228
May 24th, 2011
1:53 pm
must have been road games
Dirty Dawg
May 24th, 2011
2:42 pm
If your definition of a ‘bad sports town’ is one that won’t show up, pay boo-coop bucks for tickets, refreshments and parking, at an ever-increasing pace – regardless of how well any given team may be performing, then you’re right, we’re not a goodun’. Haven’t checked the numbers but you show me any – beyond those you can count on one hand – fans of any franchise any where that fill their stadiums/arenas year-in and year-out while those teams are constantly losing. Seems to me I read that when the Blackhawks had some down years even the Chicago faithful didn’t sell the place out. People in this town will support a winner in anything, with the possible exception of women’s basketball and professional soccer.
Those that complain about the Braves not selling out all their playoff games – although I believe we did last season – there’s history there. For umpteen years the Braves made the playoffs…and in all but one lost their last game – whether it was during the WS or in earlier rounds. Season ticket holders soon found that in order for them to have their regular seats they had to commit to every possible ticket for every possible game from the Wild-card to the World Series….that’s thousands and thousands of dollars, in advance with a hassle on the back end after they lost to get a refund – the team kept pushing them to apply it against the next year’s season tickets. So then the choice was ‘just how many games can I afford to attend during this post-season?’ Those decisions usually meant folks ‘opted’ for later rounds in the hope that they could see ‘em advance…I mean, you go out to the game with the expectation of going home happy…and if you don’t, go home happy, that is, pretty soon you start to be even more selective…which leads to some empty seats somewhere along the way.
Even college football and b-ball are subject to the same phenomena – when’s the last time Alexander was sold out…or Grant Field for that matter? Used to be every B-ball game was packed, now even the Georgia game wasn’t.
And, finally, I’ll start taking crap from sports commentators and writers about attendance when they show me just how many games they have ever paid to attend, let alone buy season tickets to…then they can talk.
George
May 24th, 2011
4:50 pm
Bad ownership causes lukewarm fan response. The Falcons are running the best operation in Atlanta because A. Blank cares and spends money to get better. The Braves have slipped since the new management came on board, and things will improve when Liberty sells out and goes back to the media business. The Hawks and Thrashers have been handcuffed by the ownership feuding, and the lack of money to make them competitive. The Hawks have done better than the Thrashers, but is Larry Drew the best coach we could get? The Atlanta Spirit should have never been allowed to buy a franchise. They are just a bunch of guys with some money, but not enough money to make them rich, and deep pockets are needed to have a successful sports team in Atlanta. Ask Arthur Blank and Ted Turner.
Brendan
May 24th, 2011
6:06 pm
JSS, I just don’t think this team was ever given a fair chance. And I do think media could have been much harder on pushing for changes. But, this is “nice, friendly” Atlanta, where we don’t write articles titled, “Fire Waddell Now!”
Truth2
May 24th, 2011
6:41 pm
The Atlanta fans should not in any shape or form is scrutinized for the bad management these Atlanta teams have produced- neither in the past, nor at this present time. Remember- the makeup of these teams represent management decisions, obtaining products (players, coaches, GM’s) that the ownership procured via trades, drafts, etc. The fans can only voice their support or non-support for these multimillionaires playing a kids sport that many of us weren’t fortunate or gifted enough, or lucky enough to make a living doing it. Atlanta back in the day was the type of party town where it wasn’t unusual to see sports fans entering arenas at halftime, with their disco clothing on coming from the club, then to the game. So, no- Atlanta hasn’t always been a sports city up until the late 80’s and early 90’s. That’s when the Braves seem to have started something special, and then fizzed out. The Hawks were at their best with Fratello, Nique, Spud, Doc, Mookie, Steve Smith, even- Racasner off the bench. We had Latenier, Tree, Mutombo, etc. Then all of a sudden-the wheels just fell off the wagon. Josh Smith is as close as we can get-talent wise. J.J.-his contract and 2011 season and playoff were a bust. But J.J.’s poor play lies squarely on the shoulders of L.D. Meanwhile, back to L.D. That hiring decision was the biggest mistake that Hawks management made-because it affected all of the players on this teams chemistry from top to bottom. Last year- in retrospect, the decision to change coaches was right there in the news after last year’s early playoff exit. It was right there in the paper- when the press asked management-why are you going to get rid of a coach-who helped turn this team around and built up to a non winning record to a winning record for seven years and a playoff franchise up to this point? You know what GM Sund had to say? Well, I’ve made this decision to hire L.D. and we’ll see where it goes. If it passes, we’ve made the right decision, if it fails, well, we’ll cross that bridge when we get there. We’ll look stupid. It was a gamble, and Sund knew this. Sund knew that he had enough talented players to probably make the playoffs, but that’s where it ends. Meanwhile, the Hawks players were put in situations where their individual games were compromised because of lack of coaching experience where their defensive and offensive strengths and weaknesses- were exposed. L.D. was a rookie coach that should not have been coaching this type of team in a big city. If it were up to me, I would’ve gotten rid of the baby with the bath water-so to speak. Why put old wine in new wineskin? I’m just sayin…
eskoballa
May 25th, 2011
2:36 am
there are far worst sports cities than atlanta. got 1 championship overall for this city, but guess no 1 outside atl sees that in baseball, but when new orleans gets a championship in their city its all like(YAHOO WE GOT OURSELVES A CHAMPIONSHIP….LIGHT THE SKIES WITH FIREWORKS AND GO MEDIA CUZ WE CELEBRATING HARD!!!!!)
Mat"T"
May 25th, 2011
6:02 am
Gauging by the fact that there is 340 comments to this story, maybe we are a great sports city…
Mat"T"
May 25th, 2011
6:06 am
When people talk championships, why don’t they mention the Atlanta Chief’s 1968 championship in the NASL????????????????????
MoneyDawg
May 25th, 2011
8:55 am
We’re talking about HOCKEY! Nobody in the South really cares about hockey. Unless you moved here from the North, nobody cares about it or even understands the game. Same goes for soccer. Atlanta will never be able to support a major league soccer team because nobody down here cares about the sport. All the South really cares about is football and more importantly, college football!
et
May 25th, 2011
12:14 pm
Lousy sports town. Worst in America. I remember baseball playoff games where the Braves couldn’t sell out. I don’t care how many time you get to the post-season, other cities (Boston, NY, St. Louis) would snatch up tickets in a heartbeat. Empty seats at Falcons games (even after a Super Bowl appearance). NBA & NHL? Even worse. This is a large market. The excuses you hear could be made by lots of other cities, but they’re not.
Paul E. Heck
May 26th, 2011
4:03 am
Nice post…….:)thanks for sharing with us.
Gainesville Mortgage
BooBoo
May 27th, 2011
10:34 am
Call it a poor sports town. However, Atlanta is 90% imports from other towns, and 10% too poor to leave. The 90% wants Atlanta teams to lose, but jumps on the band wagon if it means buying tickets as a good business expense. Losing teams are not good business expenses. The problem is paying players many millions of dollars when they are nothing more than puffed up show balloons, like those brought out each year for the Macy’s parade. Who wants to pay to watch a parade? No one. The average ticket for an Atlanta sports event is a significant cost for budgeted households. Sports have priced themselves into the caviar and champagne class, rather than the 5-cents beer, 5-cents peanuts, and 50-cents ticket that made (baseball especially) them popular. Someone needs to get a grip on reality. Grown men playing a child’s game, when they should be out working for a living, is not something worthy of being paid so highly. Society is tearing apart at the seams, and the madness of professional sports is part of that. Call if a poor sports town, but one person’s poor sports town is another person’s town refusing to support the madness of uncontrolled greed – by players and owners. They should all pack up and leave Atlanta.
johndawg
May 27th, 2011
10:47 am
I love the Braves… but, going to a game is a pain in the arse! It takes us at least an 1 1/2 hours to get to Turner Field through traffic for a weekday game. And, we don’t get home until almost midnight if we stay for the entire game. Can’t do that with a 6 year old… and family.
EAZYE
May 27th, 2011
11:57 am
tickets are too damn high!!! lol it makes no logical sense to pay the hi price of tickets….. tickets need to be 15-20 $$$ for all seats regardless where you sit…. if you want people to come out.. don’t televise games….what happened when ball players where just “regular” jones like in the 30’s 40’s 50s…….why sacrifice?? you have to drive or take marta downtown and its just a pain getting there…. build more arenas in the suburbs where most individuals have the $$ and wouldnt mind going to arena thats close by…
StungByAYellowJacket
May 27th, 2011
12:54 pm
“Someone needs to get a grip on reality. Grown men playing a child’s game, when they should be out working for a living, is not something worthy of being paid so highly”
AMEN BOOBOO!!!!
Mike
May 27th, 2011
1:23 pm
Here are reasons I don’t go to Braves, Hawks, Falcons, Thrashers games:
1) Traffic sucks
2) The stadiums/arenas are too difficult to get to
3) I don’t want to sit in three hours of traffic to get there and back
4) Traffic sucks
If you want the fans with money (i.e. north side) to come out in big numbers, put the stadiums where we can get to them without sitting half a day in traffic.