“It was because of Magic Johnson, I think, that trade happened” – Dominique Wilkins on why told the Utah Jazz he didn’t want to play for them after being drafted originally appeared on Basketball Network.
There was never a question of talent when Dominique Wilkins stepped out of the University of Georgia in 1982. What existed instead was tension between a player who knew exactly who he was and a team that wanted him to be someone else.
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The Utah Jazz had the third overall pick in the NBA Draft and saw a high-flying, physically gifted forward who could slide into their power forward slot. But Wilkins, whose game thrived on space, rhythm and flair, wasn’t about to be boxed in.
Wilkins’ decision
The Jazz called his name that June. And before the ink could dry, the resistance was already there. Utah wanted him to grind in the paint as a power forward. ‘Nique had other plans. He wasn’t about to give up the perimeter, the motion, the above-the-rim grace that defined his game.
“I didn’t want to go to Utah,” the Hall of Famer said. “It was because of Magic Johnson, I think, that trade happened, because I used to tour all over the country with all the greatest players in the league at that time… And I thought that journey with Magic helped push that trade.”
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“The Human Highlight Film” had just wrapped up a standout junior season, averaging 21.6 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. He had the flash of the ABA and the substance of a dominant collegiate forward. That trade — one that became one of the most defining early moments of Wilkins’ pro career — landed him with the Atlanta Hawks, where his real story began.
The move away from Utah was a recalibration of destiny. The Jazz, faced with Wilkins’ disinterest, shipped his draft rights to the Hawks in exchange for John Drew, Freeman Williams and a million dollars in cash. It wasn’t a blockbuster at the time, but it aged like one.
Drew would battle addiction, Williams was a role player and Dominique, well, he would go on to become the face of a franchise, an icon of 1980s and early ’90s basketball and a nine-time All-Star.
In a strange twist, the Los Angeles Lakers actually held the No. 1 overall pick in that same 1982 draft before trading it to the San Diego Clippers, who then selected Terry Cummings.
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Had the Lakers kept the pick, Wilkins might’ve ended up with the Showtime purple and gold — a possibility that would have entirely shifted his career arc. Instead, he went to Georgia and later landed in Atlanta, just hours away from his college stomping grounds. The fit proved perfect.
A refined game
The high-flyer was made for Atlanta. And Atlanta was made for him. Over 12 seasons with the Hawks, he averaged 26.4 points per game, claimed a scoring title in 1986 with 30.3 points a night and became one of the most electric dunkers the league had ever seen. More than that, he brought relevance to a Hawks franchise that had long floated in anonymity.
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But according to Wilkins, much of that readiness to take over stemmed from the formative summers spent battling against the NBA elite in real-time pickup games. These weren’t casual shootarounds. They were high-intensity, pride-on-the-line matchups with Magic Johnson organizing elite-level runs. For Dominique, those summers were the prelude to the big stage.
“Magic kind of discovered me coming out of college even though I was a high draft pick,” the nine-time All-Star recalled. “I used to travel with all the best players … So, coming into the NBA, I was ready to play because I already played with the best players during the summer.”
By the time he suited up as a rookie, he wasn’t the wide-eyed newcomer most franchises expect from a first-year player. He was sharper, faster, more self-aware. That early exposure gave him both confidence and clarity. It also gave him the leverage to say no to Utah without flinching.
Looking back, the trade was a win-win — but mostly for Wilkins and the Hawks. Utah eventually found success years later with Karl Malone and John Stockton, but it took a different timeline and a different vision. ‘Nique, meanwhile, became a pillar of consistency and showmanship. He recorded 25,613 career points and left the game with a résumé that includes a place in the Hall of Fame, a No. 21 jersey hanging in State Farm Arena and a legacy as one of the greatest small forwards of his generation.
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This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on May 30, 2025, where it first appeared.