The Atlanta Hawks have had some of the best scorers in NBA history don their uniform. They also have one of the best current scorers in the league in Trae Young. Let’s highlight their top five all-time single season points per game leaders.
1. Bob Pettit, 1961-62, 31.1 Points Per Game
The Milwaukee Hawks drafted Pettit with the second pick in the 1954 Draft. He played his entire career for the Hawks franchise, winning two MVP Awards along the way. He made the All-Star team in each season, including his rookie campaign when he also won the Rookie of the Year Award. He led the league in points per game two times during his career, but not in the 1961-62 season when he averaged a career-high 31.1 points per game. He finished third behind Wilt Chamberlain (50.4) and Walt Bellamy (31.6).
2. Dominique Wilkins, 1987-88, 30.7 Points Per Game
Wilkins made nine All-Star teams during his career and finished inside the top-five in MVP voting three times. He also played in at least 78 games in each of his first nine seasons in the league. His best single-season scoring performance came in 1987-88 when he averaged 30.7 points per game. He attempted 25.1 shots per game that season, shooting 46.4% from the field. His average of 30.7 points per game in 1987-88 ranked second in the league behind Michael Jordan (35.0).
3. Dominique Wilkins, 1985-86, 30.3 Points Per Game
Wilkins is a regular on this leaderboard when you consider that he averaged 26.4 points per game during his tenure with the Hawks. His average of 30.3 points per game not only ranks third on this list for the Hawks, but it marked the one time in his career that Wilkins led the league in points per game. It also helped Wilkins finish second in MVP voting that season.
4. Dominique Wilkins, 1992-93, 29.9 Points Per Game
The 1992-93 campaign was Wilkins’ last full season with the Hawks. He appeared in 71 games, averaging 29.9 points and shooting 46.8% from the field. He also averaged a career-high 1.7 three-pointers per game that season. He once again finished second in the NBA in points per game that season, coming in behind Michael Jordan (32.6).
5. Trae Young, 2019-20, 29.6 Points Per Game
Young has played his entire career with the Hawks, making four All-Star teams across seven seasons. During his rookie campaign, he finished second in the Rookie of the Year voting by averaging 19.1 points and 8.1 assists per game. Young then went on to average at least 25.3 points in each of the next five seasons. His best performance came in 2019-20 when he averaged 29.6 points per game. He did so on the strength of averaging 3.4 three-pointers per game. The only players to average more points per game than Young that season were James Harden (34.3), Bradley Beal (30.5) and Damian Lillard (30.0).