ATLANTA -- Pete Babcock was fired as general manager of the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday, with eight games left in the team's fourth straight losing season.

	Babcock

The Hawks never advanced past the second of the playoffs and won just one Central Division title during Babcock's 13 years at the helm.

"It's time to try a new plan," team president Stan Kasten said. "It's time to try something else."

Billy Knight, the former GM of the Vancouver-now-Memphis Grizzlies, was named Babcock's interim successor and will be considered for the job on a permanent basis, Kasten said.

Before this season, coach Lon Kruger guaranteed the Hawks would return to the playoffs. Instead, Atlanta is 29-45, and Kruger was fired in December.

The Hawks are virtually eliminated from the Eastern Conference race, trailing Milwaukee by 6½ games for the final playoff spot before the Bucks played Wednesday night.

By not making the playoffs, the Hawks -- who pledged a postseason guarantee at the beginning of the season -- will be rebating each season ticket holder $125 per seat. The team, part of AOL Time Warner's sports properties that are currently on the market, reportedly will give back about $500,000 to 4,000 season ticket holders.

Despite a lineup that includes three former all-stars -- Glenn Robinson, Shareef Abdur-Rahim and Theo Ratliff -- the Hawks have been one of the NBA's most disappointing teams.

"I knew the reality of life," said Babcock, who attended the news conference to announce his firing. "We needed to turn the corner and show marked improvement. We didn't."

Babcock decided to remake the roster after being swept by the New York Knicks in the second round of the 1999 playoffs. Babcock hoped to make the team younger and faster by trading Steve Smith and Ed Gray for Isaiah Rider and Jim Jackson. He later traded center Dikembe Mutombo.

Rider didn't even make it through one season with the Hawks, who released him for repeated tardiness and team rules violations. Babcock called that trade his biggest mistake.

Atlanta hasn't won more than 33 games in a season since 1998-99.

"It's not like this is a shock," Babcock said. "There's no gray area in this business. It's all about wins and losses."

Before coming to the Hawks in 1990, Babcock was GM of the Denver Nuggets. During his six years, the team won two division championships and reached the Western Conference finals once.

Babcock joined the Hawks in February 1990. During the next nine seasons, Atlanta won at least 50 games three times and made the playoffs eight times.

Babcock hired Lenny Wilkens, who led the Hawks to the Central Division championship in 1994. The GM also engineered trades that brought Smith, Mookie Blaylock, Mutombo and Christian Laettner to Atlanta.

Despite repeated postseason appearances, the Hawks were always eliminated in the first or second rounds. Babcock also was criticized for his poor draft record, including first-round busts such as Doug Edwards, Ed Gray and Priest Lauderdale.

Kasten said he considered firing Babcock after last season, but decided to give him one more chance. Babcock knew the Hawks had to make the playoffs to save his job.

"I would have stayed forever if I had the choice," he said. "But I don't think I got a raw deal by any means."

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.