As the Hawks prepare to resume regular-season play, they will have to adjust to life without former head coach Nate McMillan. After inconsistent play all season long, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski announced on Tuesday that the team has parted ways with the veteran coach.
According to Woj, team assistant Joe Prunty will take over as the interim coach for the rest of the season.
McMillan and the Hawks were expected to part in the offseason, but ownership and management decided to make the change now with time left to still salvage a playoff season and start pursuit of the franchise’s next coach, sources said.
The Atlanta Hawks dismissed coach Nate McMillan, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/Jjh3qlCnCX
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 21, 2023
The writing was already on the wall for McMillan’s tenure in Atlanta. Besides poor team performance, he butted heads with franchise star Trae Young earlier this season and even considered resigning his post amid mounting pressure.
Now, he’s out for good and the Hawks are already vetting their top candidates.
ESPN Sources: The Hawks are planning a wide-ranging search, but one candidate expected to be at the top of the list: Former Utah Jazz coach Quin Snyder. Others expected to be considered include Bucks assistant Charles Lee, Golden State assistant Kenny Atkinson.
ESPN Sources: The Hawks are planning a wide-ranging search, but one candidate expected to be at the top of the list: Former Utah Jazz coach Quin Snyder. Others expected to be considered include Bucks assistant Charles Lee, Golden State assistant Kenny Atkinson.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 21, 2023
Quin Snyder is the most qualified person for this job, but nobody knows when he’ll be open to coaching again after taking time off for medical surgery.
The Hawks, however, can’t think too hard about their next coach. At 29-30 on the season, Atlanta is just 8th in the East and in danger of falling out of the play-in bracket.
What’s Wrong With The Atlanta Hawks?
On paper, the Hawks have a pretty solid roster that should be way more competitive than they’ve been. With Trae Young, John Collins, Dejounte Murray, and Clint Capela (among others), talent doesn’t seem to be the problem for this team.
Rather, the biggest problem might have to do with the toxic culture that has already been exposed this season.
The franchise star, Trae Young, is rumored to be on the verge of asking out — and that’s after reports of negative relations with his teammates
Whatever is happening in Atlanta, firing McMillan was likely just the start of a major shuffle for this squad. This summer, we can expect to see some more changes as the organization re-tools around its most important pieces.
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