“Super Lou” and “Sweet Lou” is what they called him for his super game and sweet shot. In 1966, the St. Louis Hawks first round pick in the NBA Draft was 6’5, 215 pound Lou Hudson from the University of Minnesota. After scouts saw Hudson score 30 points with a broken hand as a college senior, they knew what a sensation he was.

In his rookie season, Hudson averaged 18.4 ppg and was named to the All-NBA Rookie Team. However, in the following season, he was called to serve in the military and wouldn’t rejoin the team until the 1968-69 season after the franchise moved to Atlanta.

Due to the franchise relocation, many changes took place during that time but Hudson rose to the occasion and brought his best game to the court. Immediately, Hudson impacted the team with his premier shooting ability while averaging 21.9 ppg in his first season. In the 1969-70 season, he earned an NBA All-Star appearance, the first of six , and shared in the glory of being Western Division Champions. Along with fellow teammate Pete Maravich, Hudson scored over 2,000 points during the regular season of 1972-73, which had only been equalled by two other players in NBA history at that time. He averaged 21.1 ppg during that season.

“Super Lou” spent 11 years out of his 13-year NBA career as a Hawk. His years in Atlanta were among his best NBA memories. One of his most memorable moments was scoring the first-ever basket for the Atlanta Hawks, at Georgia Tech's Alexander Memorial Coliseum. On September 30, 1977, Hudson was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers for Ollie Johnson. He spent his final two seasons as a Laker before ending his career in 1979. “Sweet Lou” shares an Atlanta franchise record along with Bob Pettit and Dominique Wilkins for the most points (57 points) in a single game. Over his 13-year career, he averaged 20.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.7 assists.

With his numerous accomplishments, Lou Hudson’s #23 uniform has been retired as one of the greatest Hawks of all-time. Currently, Hudson lives in Park City, Utah and enjoys high school coaching and being involved in charitable activities. In 1992, he was named “Citizen of the Year” by Park City.