Illawarra Hawks History

The team began as the Illawarra Hawks in the New South Wales men's division one championship, before joining the National Basketball League (NBL) for its inaugural season in 1979.

The Hawks played out of Beaton Park Stadium, commonly known as "The Snakepit", until 1998, when they renamed to the Wollongong Hawks and moved into WIN Entertainment Centre, known as the "Sandpit".

The NBL’s only remaining foundation club won its lone championships in 2000-01, under coach Brendan Joyce.

During that time, the Hawks have also reached the finals on 21 occasions, including the grand final in 2000-01, 2004-05, 2009-10 ansd 2016-17.

Four individuals have been crowned MVP during their time with the Hawks, including Mike Jones (1980-81), Gary Evrin (2010-11), Rotnei Clarke (2013-14) and Kevin Lisch (2015-16) with David Lindstrom (1986-87), Alan Black (1992-93 and 1994-95), Brendan Joyce (1998-99 and 2000-01) and Gordie McLeod (2009-10 and 2013-14) taking home Coach of the Year honours.

To date, five Hawks, Chuck Harmison (number four), Gordie McLeod (five), Glen Saville (12), Mat Campbell (32) and Melvin Thomas (33), have their numbers retired.