Steve Koonin (born June 6, 1957) is the
chief executive officer of the
Atlanta Hawks and
State Farm Arena
State Farm Arena (formerly Philips Arena) is a multi-purpose arena located in Atlanta, Georgia. The arena serves as the home venue for the National Basketball Association (NBA)'s Atlanta Hawks. It also served as home to the National Hockey Leag ...
. He is the former president of
Turner Broadcasting System. Koonin chairs the
Georgia Aquarium and is on the boards of
World Wrestling Entertainment,
Rubicon Technologies,
Fox Theatre,
Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce,
Emory Healthcare, and the
Woodruff Arts Center.
Early life and education
Koonin was born in 1957 in Atlanta, Georgia. He studied marketing at the
University of Georgia. Koonin is of
Jewish descent.
Career
Coca Cola Company
Koonin spent more than a decade at
The Coca Cola Company
The Coca-Cola Company is an American multinational beverage corporation founded in 1892, best known as the producer of Coca-Cola. The Coca-Cola Company also manufactures, sells, and markets other non-alcoholic beverage concentrates and syrups, ...
.
While serving as Coca Cola's VP of sports and entertainment marketing, Koonin was honored as the SportsBusiness Journal Sports Executive of the Year.
Turner Broadcasting System
He worked at
Turner Broadcasting System for over 14 years, and served as the organization's president.
Atlanta Hawks
In April 2014, the Atlanta Hawks hired Koonin as CEO of the Atlanta Hawks & State Farm Arena.
By the end of 2015, the Hawks organization built 25 community basketball courts over five years in disadvantaged communities across the city of Atlanta. During the
COVID-19 pandemic, the Atlanta Hawks leveraged partnerships with Emory Healthcare to provide thousands of meals weekly for workers on the front lines. In June 2020, Atlanta Hawks were the first NBA team to commit their
arena for use as a polling site – the largest voting center in the state of Georgia – during the
2020 election
This national electoral calendar for 2020 lists the national/federal elections held in 2020 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included.
January
*5 January:
**Cro ...
.
Boards and accolades
Koonin serves as the chairman for the
Georgia Aquarium. He is on the boards of
World Wrestling Entertainment,
Rubicon Technologies,
Fox Theatre,
Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce,
Emory Healthcare, and the
Woodruff Arts Center. Koonin was a former member of the board of
GameStop
GameStop Corp. is an American video game, consumer electronics, and gaming merchandise retailer. The company is headquartered in Grapevine, Texas (a suburb of Dallas), and is the largest video game retailer worldwide. , the company operates 4,5 ...
, resigning in 2020.
Koonin has been listed on
Atlanta Magazine’s 55 Most Powerful People shaping Atlanta,
Atlanta Business Chronicle's 100 Most Influential Atlantans, and
Georgia Trend's 100 Most Influential Georgians.
Atlanta Sports Council awarded Koonin a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2020.
Personal life
Koonin is married to Eydie Koonin, an Atlanta-based real estate agent. They have two children: David Koonin, a sports media agent with
Creative Artists Agency, and Amy Beth Koonin Taylor. In 2013, Steve and his wife Eydie created the Koonin Scholars Fund at the
Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication which provides scholarships for students.
See also
*
List of National Basketball Association team presidents
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Koonin, Steve
1957 births
Living people
National Basketball Association executives
University of Georgia alumni
American people of Jewish descent