In addition to his 11 seasons with the Hawks, Wilkins had short stints with the Los Angeles Clippers, the Boston Celtics, Panathinaikos of the Greek Basket League, with whom he won his first titles (the FIBA European League and the Greek Cup), Fortitudo Bologna of Lega Basket Serie A, the San Antonio Spurs, and the Orlando Magic before he retired in 1999.

Wilkins entered the University of Georgia in 1979 with a reputation as an exciting player and left as the “Human Highlight Film”.

As a result, the Jazz traded Wilkins to the Atlanta Hawks several months after the draft for John Drew, Freeman Williams and $1 million in cash.

[7] The trade is now considered among the most lopsided deals in NBA history,[8] as Drew and Williams would play a combined four seasons for the Jazz.

Wilkins exploded into the NBA's elite circle in 1985–86, winning the league scoring title with an average of 30.3 points per game.

Wilkins scored 57 points in one game and ranked among the Hawks' leaders in rebounding (7.9 rpg), steals (138), and free-throw percentage (.818).

After playing as a reserve the previous year, Wilkins became the first Atlanta Hawks player to start in an NBA All-Star Game since Eddie Johnson in 1981.

Atlanta went into the season with high expectations after a 50–32 mark the previous year, and the Hawks totaled a franchise-record 57 victories.

Doc Rivers, Kevin Willis, Tree Rollins, and Mike McGee contributed as the club made it through the first round of the NBA playoffs before losing in the Eastern Conference semifinals to the Detroit Pistons.

In his third straight All-Star Game appearance, Wilkins scored 29 points on 12-of-22 shooting, leading the East squad to a 138–133 victory.

During the 1989 season with the Hawks, Wilkins's scoring average dropped slightly to 26.2, good for seventh in the league, but he was an All-Star for the fourth straight year.

Without 7-foot (2.1 m) Kevin Willis, however, who missed the entire season with a fractured left foot, Atlanta lost to the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round.

Wilkins returned to dunking prominence in 1989–90 by edging out the Sacramento Kings' Kenny Smith for his second NBA Slam-Dunk championship.

Nonetheless, Atlanta struggled to a 41–41 record in Mike Fratello's last season as head coach, failing to make the playoffs for only the second time in Wilkins's career.

Atlanta returned to the playoffs after a year's absence, drawing the defending NBA champion Detroit Pistons in the first round.

He had developed into a full-fledged three-point threat, hitting 120 of 316 attempts from long range to shatter his previous career bests.

After 11½ years with the Atlanta Hawks, Wilkins was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers on February 24 in exchange for Danny Manning.

This is still the only time in NBA history a team in first place in their conference traded its leading scorer after the All-Star break.

Prior to the trade Wilkins averaged 24.4 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 2.3 assists for Atlanta, leading the club to a 36–16 record.

Hawks management and new coach Lenny Wilkens claimed Manning and his skills would help the team more during the stretch run.

Shortly after the signing, he helped Dream Team II to a gold medal at the 1994 World Championship of Basketball.

He also holds the honor of scoring the Celtics final point at the old Boston Garden, before it closed in 1995, in their game four loss to the Magic.

[16] His club-provided accommodation in the city included a four-story, marbled villa of his choosing, a maid, two cars, while even his Greek taxes were paid for him by the club.

[17] Playing on a roster alongside Stojko Vranković, Panagiotis Giannakis, Fragiskos Alvertis and Nikos Oikonomou, thirty-five-year-old Wilkins started off the season sluggishly, frequently getting targeted by the team's disciplinarian, defensively-minded head coach Božidar Maljković, even getting fined US$50,000 by the club for making too many personal trips back to the United States during the season, and complaining about being treated "like a dog" by coach Maljković.

[21] Wilkins returned to the NBA before the 1996–97 season, signing a contract as a free agent with the San Antonio Spurs, to solidify their bench scoring.

Wilkins is responsible for advising the Hawks's senior management team on basketball-related issues and is a goodwill ambassador for the community.

[24] Wilkins also serves as a color analyst for Hawks games on Bally Sports, pairing with long-time play-by-play announcer Bob Rathbun.

The academy conducted private training, camps, and clinics at the 24 Hour facility in Pearl City, Hawaii.

He took an interest in fine wines while playing professionally in Italy at the end of his career and owning a private label was one of his long-term goals.

[31] Free throws made in a game with no misses: 23–23, vs. Chicago Bulls, December 8, 1992 Consecutive free throws made in a game: 23, vs. Chicago Bulls, December 8, 1992 1 of 8 players in NBA history to average at least 25 points per game for 10 consecutive seasons: 1984–85–1993–94 Points scored in a Game 7 of a playoff series: 47, at Boston Celtics, May 22, 1988 Field goal attempts, 4-game series: 114, vs. Detroit Pistons (1986) Field goal attempts, half: 16 (1988) Field goals made, 4-game series: 63, vs. Detroit Pistons (1986) Field goal attempts, 4-game series: 108, vs. Indiana Pacers (1987)