Wigs, camo and Threezus: A night with the Hawks' 6th Man Section
ATLANTA -- "Tadow," he said, pointing to the back of his No. 44 Hawks jersey, which bore that same name across the back. "How you like me now?"
He extended a hand, his eyes hidden behind sunglasses with the team's logo on the lenses, while a red and white wig that was built into a headband, bobbed back and forth.
Minutes before the opening tip of Monday's Bucks-Hawks game at Philips Arena, Tadow began his "DEFENSE" chant. As he rationalized it, he was simply doing a public service for the players.
"When we miss a shot or make a shot, have to get back on defense," he said. "I'm just letting them know."
A voice came from behind, where Nickol and Tausha were standing. "It's going to be a long night for you," Nickol said, clutching a pair of thundersticks.
This is the Hawks' 6th Man Section, and as Tadow attests, "everyone has a job to do."
His is to start that chant for D. Then there's Luke, who passes out the signs and doles out tickets, and Jesse, whose seat is a row back from Tadow. He calls out "HANDS UP" with drill sergeant effectiveness every time an Atlanta player attempts a free throw. The section's inhabitants abide, wiggling their fingers in unison.
"It's the loudest and proudest group of Hawks fans," said Drew Frank, the team's Game Presentation Coordinator and the man behind the group. "They're supporting their team through thick and thin and they just love to be here."
In the realm of college basketball, a rowdy fan section is nothing new; Duke has the Cameron Crazies, Michigan State has The Izzone, and on and on. But in the NBA, they're not so common.
Six years ago, the Hawks saw one in action in the form of the Bucks' Squad 6. They wanted to pursue something similar and Frank was tasked with making it happen, so he began by calling friends at local colleges.
"(I said) 'Hey, we've got this group that we wanted to start up,'" he recalled. "'It's very similar to a college section at a college basketball game. Would you be interested in that type of thing?'"
On April 17, 2010, the 6th Man Section debuted. It was Game 1 of the opening-round playoff series against Milwaukee and fans showed up wearing camouflage for a "Buck hunting" theme night.
"We didn't know necessarily what was going to happen, what kind of turnout we were going to get," Frank said. "But it blew up real quick."
Tadow, the leader of the 6th Man Section's "DEFENSE" chant.
The next season they began holding auditions. Those hoping to join have to fill out an application, and if they get through that round, get in front of a panel of Hawks personnel. They are asked questions about their fandom and to do an impromptu cheer.
"We'll just kind of let them do their own thing," Frank said. "Tell us why they should be part of the section. They may start a song, or dance or do different cheers or tell some epic story about how they became a Hawks fan when they were 5 years old. We've seen everything."
Larry was at those first auditions and was also one of the fans at that first series vs. the Bucks. He recalls the cheer he performed, ZaZa Pachulia's name set to the tune of 'Hava Nagila.'
"This is just how I live every day, just being a Hawks ambassador everywhere you go," he said.
Mitch is another of those stalwarts. The 55-year-old senior vice president of a major bank, he is known simply as "The Mayor."
That moniker came from the Foursquare app and Mitch was always the first to check in at the arena, giving him a mayorship that extended to his 6th Man persona. He mans a spot at the top left corner of the section, helping ushers by directing fans.
"This is a job almost," Mitch of being in the section. "The Hawks have employed us with tickets and this opportunity to support the group."
The 6th Man Section has an estimated 250 members, with 90 on hand per game. Those who consistently attend games are given priority -- close to 50 attend every home game -- but on this night, the fans welcomed this writer, a newbie to their midst.
The rules are simple: stand up, cheer and wear Hawks gear.
"Just be the biggest fan possible, really, "Luke said.
The only time you sit is during a time out, those stops, one fan would say "You have to take advantage of them."
Fittingly, it's "Buck hunting" night again in a rehash of that first night of the 6th Man Section and Nickol and Tausha got the memo.
The two are wearing camouflage pants, as is Laura, another of the original members. Throughout the section is garb better suited for a tree stand than a stadium's stands, along with bright orange hunting clothes.
"I need to shoot a buck," yelled Madolyn as she clenched fists wrapped around a black pompom. "I need to shoot a buck."
In a 65-second span it was the shooting of Kyle Korver -- better known as Threezus in these parts -- who whipped this section into a frenzy.
With 5:48 remaining in the third quarter, the All-Star shooting guard buried a 3-pointer from the top of the arc. Twenty-two seconds later Korver took a half-court heave from DeMarre Carroll and buried a 21-foot jumper, before canning back-to-back 25-foot 3s.
It was a one-man 11-point run in just over a minute, and from the vantage point of the 6th Man Section, it ended like this:
Fingers scrambling to grab the edge of the seat in front of me as I fell to the side, colliding with Tadow. It was courtesy of Daniel, who was sitting to my right and bounced himself off those around him in a 3-pointer fueled mosh pit.
We jumped our way through 'Zombie Nation,' waved our fingers at Jesse's request, and every time the Bucks touched the ball, chanted "DEFENSE" along with Tadow.
The Hawks would walk off the court with a 101-88 win, their 56th, which is one away from the franchise record. As we made our way out of the stands, Tadow extended his hand again before pulling in for a bro hug.
It was, as Larry would put it, the evolution of life in the section.
"At first it's like 'Who's that crazy weirdo with the wig on?' and then later you become really good friends," he said. "By the end of the season you're like 'That guy's really cool.'"
Follow Cory McCartney on Twitter @coryjmccartney
