1968–69 Atlanta Hawks season

West Division Finals
(Eliminated 1–4)
West Division Finals; (Eliminated 1–4)
	Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
Television	WQXI-TV
Radio	WQXI
< 1967–68	1969–70 >

The 1968–69 Atlanta Hawks season was the team's first season in Atlanta, 20th in the NBA, and 23rd overall. The Hawks relocated from St. Louis, where the franchise played the previous thirteen seasons. Lenny Wilkens was traded to the Seattle SuperSonics in exchange for Walt Hazzard,^[1] who would help lead the Hawks to a second-place finish with a record of 48 wins and 34 losses. In the playoffs, the Hawks eliminated the San Diego Rockets in six games. In the Western Conference Finals, the Hawks challenged the Los Angeles Lakers; the Lakers would eliminate the Hawks in 5 games.^[1]

Draft picks

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	College
1	13	Skip Harlicka	Guard	United States	South Carolina
10	131	Dwight Waller	Forward	United States	Tennessee State

^[2]

Roster

Players

Coaches

Pos.	No.	Name	Height	Weight	From
C	31	Beaty, Zelmo	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	Prairie View A&M
F/C	32	Bridges, Bill	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	228 lb (103 kg)	Kansas
G/F	27	Caldwell, Joe	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	Arizona State
F/C	24	Davis, Jim	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	Colorado
G	18–19	Guerin, Richie	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	Iona
F	12	Hamilton, Dennis	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	Arizona State
G	21	Harlicka, Skip (DP)	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	South Carolina
G	42	Hazzard, Walt	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	UCLA
G/F	23	Hudson, Lou	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	Minnesota
G	20	Lehmann, George	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Campbell (KS)
G	10	Ohl, Don	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Illinois
F/C	29	Silas, Paul	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Creighton
F	16–34	Waller, Dwight (DP)	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Tennessee State

Head coach

Richie Guerin (Iona)

Legend

(C) Team captain
(DP) Unsigned draft pick
(FA) Free agent
(S) Suspended
Injured

Regular season

Season standings

Western Division v t e	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Neutral	Div
x-Los Angeles Lakers	55	27	.671	–	32–9	21–18	2–0	30–10
x-Atlanta Hawks	48	34	.585	7	28–12	18–21	2–1	26–14
x-San Francisco Warriors	41	41	.500	14	22–19	18–21	1–1	20–20
x-San Diego Rockets	37	45	.451	18	25–16	8–25	4–4	20–20
Chicago Bulls	33	49	.402	22	19–21	12–25	2–3	19–21
Seattle SuperSonics	30	52	.366	25	18–18	6–29	6–5	15–23
Phoenix Suns	16	66	.195	39	11–26	4–28	1–12	8–30

Record vs. opponents

1968–69 NBA records
Team	ATL	BAL	BOS	CHI	CIN	DET	LAL	MIL	NYK	PHI	PHO	SDR	SFW	SEA
Atlanta	—	2–4	3–3	6–1	4–2	6–0	3–4	4–2	2–4	1–5	6–0	3–4	4–3	4–2
Baltimore	4–2	—	5–2	6–0	4–3	7–0	3–3	5–1	3–4	2–4	6–0	5–1	3–3	4–2
Boston	3–3	2–5	—	4–2	5–2	5–1	2–4	5–1	1–6	5–2	6–0	4–2	3–3	3–3
Chicago	1–6	0–6	2–4	—	1–5	3–3	3–4	5–1	2–4	1–5	4–2	3–3	4–3	4–3
Cincinnati	2–4	3–4	2–5	5–1	—	3–4	2–4	5–1	4–2	3–4	4–2	2–4	3–3	3–3
Detroit	0–6	0–7	1–5	3–3	4–3	—	3–3	2–4	3–4	3–4	4–2	3–3	2–4	4–2
Los Angeles	4–3	3–3	4–2	4–3	4–2	3–3	—	5–1	5–1	1–5	6–0	7–0	4–3	5–1
Milwaukee	2–4	1–5	1–5	1–5	1–5	4–2	1–5	—	0–6	0–6	6–2	4–2	3–3	3–5
New York	4–2	4–3	6–1	4–2	2–4	4–3	1–5	6–0	—	4–3	5–1	3–3	5–1	6–0
Philadelphia	5–1	4–2	2–5	5–1	4–3	4–3	5–1	6–0	3–4	—	5–1	4–2	2–4	6–0
Phoenix	0–6	0–6	0–6	2–4	2–4	2–4	0–6	2–6	1–5	1–5	—	1–7	2–4	3–3
San Diego	4–3	1–5	2–4	3–3	4–2	3–3	0–7	2–4	3–3	2–4	7–1	—	3–3	3–3
San Francisco	3–4	3–3	3–3	3–4	3–3	4–2	3–4	3–3	1–5	4–2	4–2	3–3	—	4–3
Seattle	2–4	2–4	3–3	3–4	3–3	2–4	1–5	5–3	0–6	0–6	3–3	3–3	3–4	—

Game log

1968–69 game log
Total: 48–34

October (Total: 3–4)

Game	Date	Team	Score	Location Attendance	Record
1	October 16	Cincinnati	110–125	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	0–1
2	October 19	Milwaukee	125–107	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	1–1
3	October 23	Chicago	106–91	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	2–1
4	October 25	Seattle	112–123	Seattle Center Coliseum	2–2
5	October 27	Phoenix	123–100	Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum	3–2
6	October 29	L.A. Lakers	124–125	The Forum	3–3
7	October 30	San Diego	116–127	San Diego Sports Arena	3–4

November (Total: 9–8)

Game	Date	Team	Score	Location Attendance	Record
8	November 1	San Francisco	109–105	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	4–4
9	November 3	Boston	103–123	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	4–5
10	November 6	Baltimore	119–140	Baltimore Civic Center	4–6
11	November 8	San Diego	114–101	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	5–6
12	November 9	San Francisco	113–106	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	6–6
13	November 12	San Francisco	108–123	Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena	6–7
14	November 13	Seattle	142–113	Seattle Center Coliseum	7–7
15	November 15	Philadelphia	115–116	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	7–8
16	November 16	Cincinnati	125–130	Cincinnati Gardens	7–9
17	November 19	Milwaukee	89–119	Milwaukee Arena	7–10
18	November 20	New York	111–106	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	8–10
19	November 21	Detroit	129–121	Cobo Arena	9–10
20	November 23	Chicago	114–96	Chicago Stadium	10–10
21	November 24	Baltimore	111–118	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	10–11
22	November 26	Baltimore	99–102	Baltimore Civic Center	10–12
23	November 27	Cincinnati	94–91	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	11–12
24	November 30	Cincinnati	126–109	Cincinnati Gardens	12–12

December (Total: 10–3)

Game	Date	Team	Score	Location Attendance	Record
25	December 3	New York	93–126	Madison Square Garden	12–13
26	December 4	New York	113–121	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	12–14
27	December 6	L.A. Lakers	94–99	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	12–15
28	December 8	Phoenix	121–99	Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum	13–15
29	December 10	San Francisco	111–100	Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena	14–15
30	December 12	Seattle	93–91	Seattle Center Coliseum	15–15
31	December 13	L.A. Lakers	105–103	The Forum	16–15
32	December 17	Chicago	87–83	Chicago Stadium	17–15
33	December 18	Milwaukee	122–116	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	18–15
34	December 21	Detroit	120–110	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	19–15
35	December 26	Seattle	126–96	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	20–15
36	December 28	Boston	110–97	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	21–15
37	December 29	Baltimore	101–99	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	22–15

January (Total: 11–7)

Game	Date	Team	Score	Location Attendance	Record
38	January 2	Chicago	106–88	Chicago Stadium	23–15
39	January 3	Detroit	128–106	Cobo Arena	24–15
40	January 4	L.A. Lakers	111–121	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	24–16
41	January 5	Phoenix	97–96	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	25–16
42	January 8	Philadelphia	111–112	Spectrum	25–17
43	January 10	Detroit	104–101	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	26–17
44	January 11	L.A. Lakers	104–100	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	27–17
45	January 16	Phoenix	112–107	Columbia, South Carolina	28–17
46	January 17	Phoenix	112–107	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	29–17
47	January 19	New York	100–96	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	30–17
48	January 21	San Diego	113–124	San Diego Sports Arena	30–18
49	January 22	Phoenix	125–107	Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum	31–18
50	January 24	L.A. Lakers	110–106	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	32–18
51	January 25	Baltimore	112–109	Baltimore Civic Center	33–18
52	January 26	Philadelphia	115–119	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	33–19
53	January 28	Boston	96–108	Boston Garden	33–20
54	January 29	Philadelphia	96–119	Spectrum	33–21
55	January 31	Seattle	112–119	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	33–22

February (Total: 9–7)

Game	Date	Team	Score	Location Attendance	Record
56	February 1	Detroit	119–99	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	34–22
57	February 2	San Diego	115–103	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	35–22
58	February 4	New York	97–122	Madison Square Garden	35–23
59	February 7	Boston	109–107	Boston Garden	36–23
60	February 8	Chicago	106–97	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	37–23
61	February 9	Baltimore	101–102	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	37–24
62	February 11	San Francisco	87–92	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	37–25
63	February 12	Milwaukee	113–106	Milwaukee Arena	38–25
64	February 14	Boston	104–101	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	39–25
65	February 16	San Francisco	106–113	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	39–26
66	February 17	Milwaukee	111–123	Baltimore, MD	39–27
67	February 18	Cincinnati	124–123	Cleveland	40–27
68	February 20	Detroit	97–87	Cobo Arena	41–27
69	February 23	San Diego	124–92	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	42–27
70	February 25	New York	101–122	Madison Square Garden	42–28
71	February 28	Boston	120–122	Boston Garden	42–29

March (Total: 6–5)

Game	Date	Team	Score	Location Attendance	Record
72	March 2	Milwaukee	112–108	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	43–29
73	March 6	Philadelphia	139–99	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	44–29
74	March 9	Cincinnati	134–107	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	45–29
75	March 11	Chicago	90–102	Chicago Stadium	45–30
76	March 12	Chicago	109–90	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	46–30
77	March 15	Philadelphia	120–122	Spectrum	46–31
78	March 16	Seattle	131–127 (OT)	Alexander Memorial Coliseum	47–31
79	March 18	San Francisco	128–115	Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena	48–31
80	March 20	San Diego	97–115	San Diego Sports Arena	48–32
81	March 21	L.A. Lakers	103–116	The Forum	48–33
82	March 23	San Diego	121–128	San Diego Sports Arena	48–34

1968–69 schedule

Playoffs

1969 playoff game log

Division Semifinals: 4–2 (home: 3–0; road: 1–2)

Game	Date	Team	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location Attendance	Series
1	March 27	San Diego	W 107–98	Lou Hudson (39)	Bill Bridges (22)	Ohl, Hazzard (3)	Alexander Memorial Coliseum 4,194	1–0
2	March 29	San Diego	W 116–114	Zelmo Beaty (31)	Bill Bridges (14)	Joe Caldwell (8)	Alexander Memorial Coliseum 6,006	2–0
3	April 1	@ San Diego	L 97–104	Zelmo Beaty (31)	Zelmo Beaty (17)	Joe Caldwell (6)	San Diego Sports Arena 9,340	2–1
4	April 4	@ San Diego	L 112–114	Walt Hazzard (34)	Beaty, Bridges (11)	Walt Hazzard (5)	San Diego Sports Arena 12,337	2–2
5	April 6	San Diego	W 112–101	Joe Caldwell (26)	Bill Bridges (17)	Caldwell, Hazzard (5)	Alexander Memorial Coliseum 4,007	3–2
6	April 7	@ San Diego	W 108–106	Lou Hudson (27)	Bill Bridges (17)	Caldwell, Hazzard (4)	San Diego Sports Arena 10,117	4–2

Division Finals: 1–4 (home: 1–1; road: 0–3)

Game	Date	Team	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location Attendance	Series
1	April 11	Los Angeles	L 93–95	Zelmo Beaty (29)	Bill Bridges (20)	Walt Hazzard (6)	The Forum 16,190	0–1
2	April 13	@ Los Angeles	L 102–104	Joe Caldwell (34)	Caldwell, Bridges (10)	Bill Bridges (5)	The Forum 15,136	0–2
3	April 15	Los Angeles	W 99–86	Zelmo Beaty (22)	Zelmo Beaty (15)	Lou Hudson (5)	Alexander Memorial Coliseum 7,140	1–2
4	April 17	Los Angeles	L 85–100	Lou Hudson (35)	Zelmo Beaty (20)	Bill Bridges (5)	Alexander Memorial Coliseum 7,140	1–3
5	April 20	@ Los Angeles	L 96–104	Zelmo Beaty (30)	Bill Bridges (22)	Lou Hudson (7)	The Forum 16,273	1–4

1969 schedule

Player statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field-goal percentage	3P%	3-point field-goal percentage	FT%	Free-throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game

Season

Player	GP	MPG	FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	PPG
Walt Hazzard	80	30.3	.397	.707	3.3	5.9	11.2
Zelmo Beaty	72	35.8	.470	.731	11.1	1.8	21.5
Bill Bridges	80	36.6	.453	.677	14.2	3.7	11.8
Joe Caldwell	81	33.6	.507	.537	3.7	4.0	15.8
Jim Davis	78	17.5	.467	.667	6.8	1.2	8.8
Richie Guerin	27	17.5	.423	.770	2.2	3.7	5.6
Dennis Hamilton	25	5.6	.552	.400	1.2	0.3	3.0
Skip Harlicka	26	8.4	.456	.774	0.6	1.4	4.1
Lou Hudson	81	35.4	.492	.777	6.6	2.7	21.9
George Lehmann	11	12.5	.388	.667	0.8	2.5	5.5
Don Ohl	76	26.3	.427	.707	2.2	2.9	12.1
Paul Silas	79	23.5	.419	.613	9.4	1.8	8.7
Dwight Waller	11	2.6	.222	.429	0.9	0.1	0.6

Playoffs

Player	GP	MPG	FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	PPG
Walt Hazzard	11	32.7	.393	.787	3.0	3.9	14.0
Zelmo Beaty	11	43.0	.432	.672	12.9	2.3	22.5
Bill Bridges	11	40.2	.442	.708	16.2	3.4	15.6
Joe Caldwell	11	36.7	.485	.464	5.0	3.4	14.7
Jim Davis	8	6.5	.267	.625	2.1	0.1	1.6
Richie Guerin	3	10.7	.250	.500	1.7	2.3	1.0
Skip Harlicka	1	1.0	.000	.000	0.0	0.0	0.0
Lou Hudson	11	38.5	.468	.769	5.4	2.9	22.0
Don Ohl	11	17.6	.349	.591	1.2	1.5	6.6
Paul Silas	11	23.5	.362	.514	8.4	1.9	5.5

Awards

NBA All-Defensive Second Team

Transactions

Atlanta Hawks

Players Added

Via Draft

Via Trade

Walt Hazzard (From SuperSonics)

Players Lost

Via Trade

Lenny Wilkens (To SuperSonics)

References

^ ^a ^b Atlanta Hawks (1968–present)
^ "Atlanta Hawks (1949–) 1968 Stats, History, Awards and More". Archived from the original on August 9, 2007. Retrieved July 12, 2008.

[autogenerated1-1] Atlanta Hawks (1968–present)

[2] "Atlanta Hawks (1949–) 1968 Stats, History, Awards and More". Archived from the original on August 9, 2007. Retrieved July 12, 2008.

[1]

[2]

v t e 1968–69 NBA season by team
1968 NBA expansion draft 1968 NBA draft All-Star Game Playoffs Finals Transactions
Eastern	Baltimore Boston Cincinnati Detroit Milwaukee New York Philadelphia
Western	Atlanta Chicago Los Angeles Phoenix San Diego San Francisco Seattle