The bitter battle within the Atlanta Hawks' ownership group escalated Thursday when one of the owners took his partners to court and got a restraining order against them.
The order, sought by Steve Belkin in a Boston court, temporarily prohibits the majority of the Hawks' owners from removing him as the team's NBA governor — a position Belkin has used this week to block a trade his partners want to make with the Phoenix Suns for guard Joe Johnson.
Thursday's legal salvo is the latest setback for a troubled franchise that has struggled for years to win games, fans and credibility.
The Boston-based Belkin filed the lawsuit against his partners after they called a meeting for Friday to vote on removing him as the Hawks' governor.