The 2024 NBA Draft begins with the Atlanta Hawks on the clock.
After a 36-46 season, the Hawks defied plenty of odds, jumping up nine spots in the NBA Draft Lottery to win the No. 1 pick. It’s one of the greatest lottery upsets in the modern era.
However, the Hawks’ fortunes are evidenced by their lottery luck, as they won he first overall pick in a year without a consensus top prospect. In addition to the uncertainty at the top of the order, the Hawks have a history of bad luck with the No. 1 overall pick.
Learn more about the other times the Hawks franchise selected first overall in the NBA Draft.
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Hawks No. 1 pick history
The Hawks have made the first overall selection in the NBA Draft three times before 2024, which marks the franchise’s second No. 1 selection since moving to Atlanta in 1968. The Hawks’ previous No. 1 picks were selected while the team played in Milwaukee (1952) and St. Louis (1955).
| Year | Player | Games played |
| 1952 | Mark Workman | 5 |
| 1955 | Dick Ricketts | 29 |
| 1975 | David Thompson | — |
| 2024 | TBD |
The franchise’s three No. 1 overall picks played a combined 34 games in a Hawks uniform, with Thompson never suiting up for the team.
Workman appeared in five games with the Hawks before he was traded to the Warriors.
Ricketts, a dual-sport athlete who was a part of the St. Louis Cardinals organization, appeared in 29 games with the St. Louis Hawks before an arrangement was reached to sell his contract to the Rochester Royals, permitting him to pitch for the Cardinals’ minor league affiliate, the Rochester Red Wings.
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Why David Thompson never played for the Hawks
An in-season trade led to the Hawks acquiring the Jazz’s draft pick, which ended up as the No. 1 pick in 1975. In addition to the No. 1 pick, Atlanta had its own pick, the No. 3 pick in the draft.
Thompson was the first overall selection in the 1975 NBA and ABA Drafts. The Hawks selected Thompson first in the NBA Draft and the Virginia Squires took Thompson first in the ABA Draft.
For various financial reasons, the Hawks’ inability to negotiate a contract with Thompson led him to the ABA, where his draft rights were traded to the Nuggets. One of the biggest financial hindrances was that Atlanta could not afford to sign Thompson and third-overall pick Marvin Webster.
Thompson signed a six-year, $3 million deal with Denver, making him the highest-paid rookie in professional sports at the time. Webster would also join the ABA’s Nuggets.
Thompson enjoyed a nine-year career in the ABA and NBA and was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 1996.