The Atlanta Hawks and Emory University have formed a training and sports medicine center which will be the first paring of a professional team and an academic medical center’s sports medicine program. Andy Miller of the Newnan Times Herald writes that the Hawks will gain a state-of-the-art training center for basketball players and Emory will provide the latest in sports medicine at the Executive Park facility. The facility will be privately funded.
Jonathan Lewin, CEO of Emory Healthcare, is quoted by Miller as saying, “Delivering on-site care not only will enable us to provide faster care to Hawks players, but also will enhance our ability to conduct sports performance research and translate what we learn to all athletes, both professional and recreational.”
The Hawks will gain a state-of-the-art training center for their basketball players. The plan is for Emory to provide the latest in sports medicine to amateur, collegiate, and professional athletes of all kinds at the Executive Park facility.
The Hawks’ principal owner, Tony Ressler, said that the new facility “will revolutionize how other NBA teams approach integrating sports medical technology within their own basketball training centers. We are proud that this facility will go beyond benefiting just our players, but will also be a valuable sports medicine resource available to the entire community.”
According to Miller, equipment at the new center will include a 3 Tesla MRI scanner, which provides the best and fastest diagnosis for soft tissue and bone bruise injuries. Other offerings will include “3D motion capture, ” on-site testing of blood and sweat, and analysis for nutritional deficits and markers vital for the creation of individualized health and recovery plans. A recovery area will have cryotherapy, sensory deprivation tanks, and in-ground hydrotherapy.
