COLLEGE PARK — Earlier today, the Atlanta Hawks, city of College Park and the
Georgia International Convention Center (GICC) announced the Skyhawks as the
official team name of the Atlanta Hawks NBA G League affiliate which will begin
play in College Park for the 2019-20 season. The announcement was made at the
17th annual South Metro Development Outlook meeting, the largest conference of
its kind in metro Atlanta with a focus on fostering continued economic growth in
the Southern Region, including Clayton, Coweta, Douglas, Fayette, Fulton and
Henry counties.
“We are excited to introduce the Skyhawks to College Park and bring the future
stars of the Atlanta Hawks and our one-of-a-kind entertainment to the Gateway
Center,” Hawks CEO Steve Koonin said. “With its proximity, resources and most
importantly its enthusiasm, we could not find a better home for the Skyhawks
than the city of College Park.”
The Skyhawks will play their home games at the Gateway Center @ College Park, a
multi-purpose sports and entertainment venue. With 5,000 seats for events such
as concerts and convocations and 3,500 seats available for the Hawks NBA G
League basketball games, the Gateway Center will be the premier event facility
in the south metro area. The Skyhawks will serve as the destination’s anchor
tenant when the venue opens in November 2019.
“With steady progress underway involving development and construction of the
Arena @ College Park Gateway Center, the City of College Park is extremely
excited to witness the Atlanta Hawks Basketball Club’s unveiling the name of the
College Park Skyhawks NBA G League affiliate,” College Park Mayor Jack P.
Longino said. “We are likewise also proud of the resulting partnership that
enabled this major achievement to come to fruition, encouraging additional
exciting outcomes for our community in the coming years.”
“The City of College Park is delighted to welcome the Skyhawks to the campus of
the Gateway Center. As we move towards completion of the Arena, the excitement
of high-profile sports entertainment coming to the Southside will grow
exponentially. We are appreciative of the Atlanta Hawks organization for having
the vision of inclusion,” said Mercedes Miller, Executive Director of the GICC.
“We believe that Gateway Center with the GICC, the Skytrain and hotel package
has all the components to make this partnership successful.”
The NBA G League, the NBA’s official minor league, has grown from eight teams
during its inaugural campaign in 2001-02 to feature a record 28 teams for the
2019-20 season, the league’s 19th. The Atlanta Hawks are one of 25 NBA teams to
own an NBA G League affiliate.
“Having grown up playing in College Park in the Hawks’ backyard, I couldn’t be
more excited to welcome the Skyhawks to my hometown,” said NBA G League
President Shareef Abdur-Rahim. “I’m thrilled to introduce the NBA G League’s
brand of exciting, family-friendly basketball to College Park and look very
forward to watching a game there next season.”
The Skyhawks name has a rich history in Georgia. One of the former mascots of
the Atlanta Hawks, the high-flying SkyHawk, entertained crowds at Philips Arena
from Nov. 1996 before retiring during the 2013-14 season. The Skyhawks also
share their name with the athletes of Point University, an accredited, nonprofit
institution in West Point, GA that educates and equips a diverse Christian
community. Founded in 1937 as Atlanta Christian College, the university’s
historic location until 2012 was in East Point, GA, less than two miles away
from the soon-to-be home of the College Park Skyhawks.
For more information on the College Park Skyhawks and how you can register for
updates, please visit http://www.cpskyhawks.com. For more information regarding
the city of College Park and the multipurpose arena, please visit
http://www.collegeparkga.com.
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