After "promising excitement and renewal" to their fans
and playing in a new arena, the Hawks "fell so far this
season that by March not even the electronic marvels of
Philips Arena could attract fans in respectable numbers,"
according to Jeffrey Denberg of the ATLANTA CONSTITUTION.
Although the 27-53 Hawks will draw their "fourth-largest
season attendance in their 31-year Atlanta history," the
expectations for their inaugural season at Philips Arena
"were for much, much more." Hawks Exec VP Lee Douglas: "I
think it's fair to say that we had high expectations for
this team and we failed." The Hawks drew ten crowds under
12,000 this season and had a season-ticket base of only
6,000, but Denberg notes those seats "were often empty."
More Douglas, on the no-shows: "We know we failed to deliver
for those people, and they have let us know. They make a
point of talking to us. And we make a point to talk to
them. ... With escalation of ticket prices, you are held to
a higher standard, and an organization has to commit to
meeting those higher standards" (ATL CONSTITUTION, 4/18).
