High Post Hoops
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Dream will not return to State Farm Arena in 2020

By Bailey Johnson

ATLANTA, GA - SEPTEMBER 8: A overview of the game between the Atlanta Dream and the New York Liberty on September 8, 2019 at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Scott Cunningham/NBAE via Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - SEPTEMBER 8: A overview of the game between the Atlanta Dream and the New York Liberty on September 8, 2019 at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Scott Cunningham/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Hawks ownership won’t make deal for Dream at State Farm Arena.

After just one season at the renovated State Farm Arena in downtown Atlanta, Mary Brock and Kelly Loeffler — owners of the Atlanta Dream — told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that the team will not return to State Farm Arena for the 2020 season. The Dream played their first nine seasons at the Atlanta Hawks’ arena downtown, then turned to McCamish Pavilion at Georgia Tech when State Farm Arena (formerly known as Phillips Arena) underwent renovation.

“Playing at State Farm was a tremendous opportunity for our fans to experience really a world-class arena,” Loeffler told the AJC. “We’re really grateful to have been able to offer that experience to our fans. But we unfortunately won’t be able to return. We understand that’s a business decision. The good news is there is a lot of venues interested in hosting the Dream – that’s our focus right now.”

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A league source confirmed to High Post Hoops that the Hawks ownership would not extend an offer of any kind to the Dream for the 2020 season.

There are quite a few arenas in and around Atlanta that could be the Dream’s next home. The Infinite Energy Center in Gwinnett is an option, as is Georgia State’s basketball arena downtown. The Dream currently practice at Georgia State, so the relationship exists for that to be an option.

Notably, the Washington Mystics moved to a new, smaller arena for the 2019 season. The Entertainment and Sports Arena seats just 4,200 and the Mystics played in front of a sellout crowd eight times this season. The new arena is shared with the Washington Wizards’ G-League team, the Capital City Go-Go.

In Atlanta, the Hawks are building a new arena for their revamped G-League team, the College Park Skyhawks. The Gateway Center will seat 3,500 for basketball games and would provide the Dream with a chance to fill an arena and create home-court advantage.

And unlike State Farm Arena, the Hawks are merely tenants at Gateway Center.

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