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The NBA will retire the No. 6 league-wide honoring legendary player and activist Bill Russell. Lou Williams is the last Atlanta Hawks player to wear the uniform number.

Every Hawks Player Who Wore No. 6

Nineteen players wore the No. 6 for the Hawks.
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Atlanta Hawks
Atlanta Hawks

Yesterday, the NBA made the incredible move of retiring the No. 6 to honor the late-great Bill Russell. The Boston Celtics legend is the winningest player in league history, yet his biggest accomplishments came off the court through his leadership.

The NBA will allow players already wearing No. 6 (such as LeBron James) to be grandfathered. Atlanta Hawks shooting guard Lou Williams wore the No. 6 during his time with the team. However, his contract expired, which makes the veteran sixth man an unrestricted free agent, and the last Hawks player to ever wear No. 6.

The Hawks organization was founded in 1946 and has called four cities home since that time. Today we remember all 19 players to wear the No. 6 for the Hawks.

Hawks Players Who Wore No. 6

1950s

Los Angeles Lakers center Ray Felix (14) in action against St. Louis Hawks forward Cliff Hagan (16) during the 1961 playoffs at the L.A. Sports Arena.

Whitey Von Nieda - 1950

Johnny Payak - 1953

Dick Surhoff - 1954

Isaac Walthour - 1954

Phil Martin - 1955

Carl McNulty - 1955

Alex Hannum - 1956

Cliff Hagan - 1957

2000s

Atlanta Hawks guard Mario West (6) against the Charlottte Bobcats at Time Warner Cable Arena. The Bobcats won 109-100.

Cal Bowdler - 2002

Jermaine Jackson - 2003

Travis Hansen - 2004

James Thomas - 2005

Cedric Bozeman - 2007

Mario West - 2008-2010

2010s

Atlanta Hawks guard Kirk Hinrich (6) dribbles the ball against the Los Angeles Clippers at the Staples Center. The Clippers defeated the Hawks 96-82.

Kirk Hinrich - 2011-2012

Pero Antić - 2014-2015

Jeremy Evans - 2018

Omari Spellman - 2019

2020s

Lou Williams is the latest Atlanta Hawks player to test positive for COVID-19 on December 22, 2021.

Lou Williams - 2021-2022

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