The Hawks were greeted by a winter storm when they returned to Atlanta early Friday morning after a long road trip up the West Coast.
While most of the storm had moved out of the Atlanta area by Saturday morning, the dangerous icy conditions it left behind caused NBA officials to postpone the Hawks’ scheduled home game against the Houston Rockets.
The league said the decision was made “to prioritize the safety of players, fans and staff due to severe weather and dangerous ice conditions in the Atlanta area.” The Rockets flight arrived in Atlanta before the postponement was announced.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON PakGazette.Com
A basketball on the court next to the NBA logo during a break in the first half of a 2023 NBA Summer League game between the Portland Trail Blazers and the Houston Rockets at the Thomas & Mack Center on 7 July 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. . (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
A winter storm dumped snow and ice on the Atlanta area on Friday, and some roads are expected to refreeze Saturday night.
NHL postpones Kings-Flames game due to devastating California wildfires
Power outage numbers in Atlanta spiked Friday night as trees falling onto power lines became a widespread problem. More than 110,000 customers were without power, primarily in the Atlanta area.
A truck becomes trapped when another truck spins its wheels on a muddy off-ramp on Interstate 285 northeast of downtown Atlanta on Friday, Jan. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Jeff Amy)
The dangerously icy conditions in the southeastern United States come amid a very different set of extremes on the West Coast. Southern California continues to deal with the devastating wildfires that broke out earlier this week in the Los Angeles metropolitan area.
On Friday, the NBA announced that the Lakers and Clippers home games scheduled for Jan. 11 would not go ahead as initially planned due to the ongoing wildfires.
“The NBA and the Clippers and Lakers organizations have been in communication with local officials in Los Angeles and Inglewood regarding the current situation in the Los Angeles area and the game postponements ensure that no resources will be diverted from fire response efforts. forestry,” the league said. in a statement.
Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California.
The Lakers’ home game against the Charlotte Hornets on Jan. 9 was previously postponed.
The NBA also announced that the National Basketball Players Association would donate $1 million to the American Red Cross and other organizations to assist in disaster relief efforts.
The Lakers have played home games in downtown Los Angeles for several decades. The Clippers stopped sharing an arena with the Lakers at the start of the 2024-25 NBA season, when the franchise moved to the $2 billion Intuit Dome in nearby Inglewood, California.
It is not yet clear whether the conditions will result in the postponement of additional Lakers or Clippers home games. Rescheduled dates for the postponed Hawks, Lakers and Clippers games will be announced at a future date, the league said.
The Hawks are scheduled to host the Phoenix Suns on January 14.
