The Atlanta Hawks Need a New Arena
Simply put, the Atlanta Hawks need a new arena and need to keep up with the rest of the NBA.
You may have heard recently that the Atlanta Hawks owners are currently discussing a plan to renovate Philips Arena and the area surrounding it. The idea is basically to develop an entertainment district that would include a variety of shops, restaurants, retail, office’s and residence’s. It would also combine and connect to the CNN Center, the Georgia Aquarium, the $1.5 billion Mercedes Benz Stadium, the College Football Hall of Fame and other attractions around Centennial Olympic Park.
The entertainment complex would be similar to L.A. Live, which is located in Los Angeles with the Staples Center. It potentially will have the same type of district in terms of the entertainment as the Braves new stadium in Cobb County. This project would cost around $300 million and Mayor Kaseim Reid has already said that the city could find financing for up to $150 million. A deal has yet to be finalized and the state legislation may be required to clear the way for the project.
As a Hawks fan in Atlanta, this isn’t what I would like to hear. As a hoop head, this isn’t what I would like to hear, too. The Atlanta Dream also deserve better as well; Phillips Arena has been open since 1999 and many people like Phillips Arena, as do I. It has a rating of 4.4 out of 5 on Google with 353 reviews, most of which have only nice things to say about it. I really like how Marta drops you off right in front of one of the entrances personally and I could exit the Marta train and literally be inside the arena in less than 20 steps. It’s cool how it spells Atlanta in huge letters across it. Phillips Arena has 92 luxury suites, 9 party suites and over 2,000 club suites that cover an entire side on the interior. In 2008, they made an upgrade so that the shot clocks are see through so they wouldn’t obstruct your view of the action.
Those types of things don’t cut it anymore. Compared to many other NBA teams, Phillips Arena is an old barn. I haven’t been to any of them, but I don’t have to. All that’s necessary is to crank up a recent edition of NBA 2K to see how far behind Phillips Arena is from like The Barclays Center in Brooklyn, or even The Amway Center in Orlando. I’ve heard Hawks CEO Steve Koonin rant and rave over the radio about the new practice facility. Seriously? Practice? We’re talking about practice?!
The Hawks provide their fans with a great product. How badly would some other cities like to have eight consecutive playoff seasons and counting in a row? Is this why the attendance for Hawks home games is always, ALWAYS ranked in the bottom half of the league? The previous owners would be thrilled if they cracked the top twenty. The Atlanta Hawks get more support from fans on the road than they do here. That’s not a knock on Hawks fans either, you guys are marvelous! I’ve found that a fan of the Hawks is usually smart, loyal and humble most of the time. At least we can take comfort in the fact that they aren’t going anywhere. Sorry, Seattle.
The only reason for the poor attendance has to be the almost-twenty year arena they have to perform in. And let’s not kid ourselves; it’s poor and on the rare occasions when they can report a sellout, that’s not really how many people were there. If you want a great deal on Hawks seats, find a season ticket holder and don’t let them get too far. Chances are they have better things to do than go to a Hawks game and usually will sell them cheap. I expected much better from the new ownership. Guess not.
Phillips Arena cost $213.5 million to build back when they broke ground in July of 1997. Now, I don’t have a city planning degree in architecture or anything like that, but why would you spend more money on renovating a place than it cost to build said place? Meanwhile, the Atlanta Falcons and Braves are getting ready to enter brand new stadiums. For crying out loud, Arthur Blank splurged on what essentially is a hardtop Mercedes Benz convertible that his team gets to play in. As soon as Tony Ressler heard of that, he should’ve one upped him. Build a Lamborghini Arena or something. That’s what we should be talking about.