Peachtree Hoops: Hawks Enter the Best of Times

[Hawksquawk]

There's nothing like a beginning.

Hope abounds. Everything is new. Possibilities are endless.

Atlanta Hawks fans have run out of beginnings. Everything was/is status quo. Faces have changed, opportunities have passed, hope is fleeting.

That's why there has been such a response to the Sunday morning cup of coffee that was Mark Bradley's piece, and others' as well, that the Hawks have been sold.

Ok, tell me more.

No more group ownership----It's just a man, man. 

Uh-huh--getting more interested---tell me more.

He's promising changes and wants a championship. Says he will be in "complete control of the team."

Uh-oh---I'm getting excited---what else?

Finally, this:

"I'm 1,000 percent an Atlanta Hawks fan," Muruelo said, and soon enough he figures to be leading them. And for those asking if he should be taken seriously ... well, he wants this team badly enough to buy it when the league is locked out. Takes some guts, wouldn't you say?    

Indeed I would!

Under the Atlanta Spirit Group, after Time Warner's icy era, the Hawks returned to the playoffs and occasional relevancy, and for that there is reason for thanks. There are members of the ASG for whom I maintain a lot of love for---and will stay on as minority owners, as I read. However, the group ownership idea was like a long distance relationship---too hard to manage and destined for divorce and failure. 

The hope for greatness had stalled, the possibilities seemed to have ended, organizational gridlock had set in, and popular opinion and faith had turned against them.

The city longed for a dynamic sole owner, much like Falcons have with Arthur Blank. The city needed a person in charge, somebody to associate with the Hawks, much like long time Bird Watchers had with Ted Turner.

Now, with the (hopefully) pending sale of the Hawks to Alex Meruelo, Hawks fans have what they have been looking for. And while he could be the next Mark Cuban or the next fill-in-the-blank-you-don't-want-him owner, but that's for later to unveil to us. Now is the time for hope, for excitement, for what will change.

It's a new beginning, a new face, and a new future. 

Hallelujah.

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