Sekou ..... Sund is moving too slowly

[pimp]

from the blog:::

And that brings us to our regularly scheduled update on the status of Hawks coach Mike Woodson, who as of this writing still has not come to terms with the Hawks on a new contract.

What must he be thinking with all this cash (and these years) being bestowed upon not just head coaching but coaching neophytes?

He might not even keep his job and these guys are cashing in like they led a team to a surprising seven-game run in the first round of the playoffs against a team that is two wins away from winning the NBA title.

I’m not losing sleep for anyone involved, mind you, but I do think it is extremely interesting to watch how things play out every year when teams blow up whatever they have to take what they believe will be steps forward.

So the Bulls dumped Scott Skiles for Del Negro and they’re supposed to be better? I have a hard time seeing this come to fruition. But I’m prepared to be wrong (it happens).

The Hawks’ inactivity since Rick Sund took over is getting dangerously close to the exhaustingly slow process that has plagued this organization the past three and a half years I’ve been here to witness their operation.

Woodson’s either your guy or he’s not. It’s really that simple. You’re either prepared to move forward with him or without him. Why prolong the inevitable, whatever it is?

It’s the same achingly slow process as the summer of 2005, when the Joe Johnson deal took forever (in NBA parlance) to get done and it came to light later, obviously, that it wasn’t just basketball as usual (there was a little ownership feud that came to light then).

It’s the same achingly slow process as the summer of 2006, when the Hawks took three months to finalize a sign-and-trade for Al Harrington that should have taken days to complete (Harrington aired out the franchise after the fact for telling him one thing and doing another, a wound that still hasn’t healed for the former Hawks captain).

We got a reprieve last summer, the luck of the lottery and those two top 11 picks that came with it made everything seem a bit smoother. And no one can complain with the returns on Al Horford’s first year in the league (Acie Law IV’s on the other hand …).

I’m already nervous about what’s (not) going on right now. We’re what six weeks, and counting, removed from the Hawks’ coming out party in the playoffs and Billy Knight’s replacement has been on the job for roughly two weeks and the coaching staff is still walking around without any definitive answers on their future (though I expect some defections by at least a couple of Woodson’s assistants no matter what happens).

Those Disney plans for next month have already been scrapped (did I mention the free agent circus that will commence July 1 when Josh Smith and Josh Childress get to do the rubber chicken routine around the league?).

Every summer, including last summer, the Hawks went into training camp with lingering questions about the roster and how it would be filled out. Why? Because they handle business on ASP time (that’s Atlanta Spirit People time).

Billy Knight balked at another year of living that life and bolted after being extended a one-year offer to continue that existence.

Might Woodson follow if he’s extended a similar offer?

I wonder.

[Diesel]

I have a message for Sekou.

Screw you. Let Sund work. Let's evaluate his work when he turns it in.

[DJlaysitup]

Let's face it...we fired our President of Operations (Bernie Mullins) and replaced him with nobody. The when BK quit (got the ultimatum...quite or get fired) we replaced him on the cheap as well. My guess is we want to fire Woody but can't find a reasonable experienced replacement to take the job on the cheap.

Personally I doubt if Sund has that much of a say in this process. He admitted on 790 the other day that any decision on a coach would be a decision by committee.

That's no big hit on him I guess - BK didn't have the ability to fire an underperforming coach either. I imagine he knew it coming in.

[mrhonline]

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I have a message for Sekou.

Screw you. Let Sund work. Let's evaluate his work when he turns it in.

Couldn't have said it better myself.

This is just the "doldrums of summer" journalism.

[Dexmethylphenidate]

You can't fire Woody... he's either resign or he isn't. And ASG wasn't going to fire BK since Sekou said he was offer a 1-yr extension.

[Lascar78]

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I have a message for Sekou.

Screw you. Let Sund work. Let's evaluate his work when he turns it in.

I feel like I'm in the twilight zone around here sometimes. I think you guys are getting too used to hawks' shenanigans. Sekou is right on the money. It doesn't take two weeks or more to decide if woody is your guy or not. As an NBA GM you should pretty much have a well informed opinion on virtually everyone who works in the league, and it doesn't take 2 weeks to watch tape and interview people to supplement that decision. By now we should easily know that they are negotiating with woody or interviewing other coaches.

FAs are signing in 3 weeks, summer league is not far away, and our new gm hasn't made a single decision yet. It DOES look bad, particularly given our recent history and the impression that we have a bunch of bozos making decisions by committee at a snail's pace. He will have plenty of time to change my opinion, but the early results are that he fits in more with the spirit's buffoonery of the past few years than a change to an experienced GM coming in and making bold decisions.

I think you guys are too used to being hawks fans. It's the same mentality that has some thinking woody isn't that bad or even good. We love the team and we get used to the mediocrity. I'm over it.

Let's get some pros in here and make some moves.

Sacramento fired their coach today, I bet they'll sign someone before us.

[Guest]

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Sacramento fired their coach today, I bet they'll sign someone before us.

You mean to say the Los Angeles Kings, not the Sacramento Kings. Sacramento hired Theus as a new coach last year, he isn't going anywhere soon.

[Guest]

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I have a message for Sekou.

Screw you. Let Sund work. Let's evaluate his work when he turns it in.

To me, it sounded like Sekou was dogging the Spirit more than he was Sund. But overall, I agree with what Sekou has been saying. We are a slow moving team with all managerial type of moves. Coaches, trades, FAs...just about the only thing we were not slow about was Shelden.

[Lascar78]

Oops, my bad. Glanced at a headline earlier and forgot about the other kings...

[DJlaysitup]

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...I feel like I'm in the twilight zone around here sometimes. I think you guys are getting too used to hawks' shenanigans. Sekou is right on the money. It doesn't take two weeks or more to decide if woody is your guy or not. As an NBA GM you should pretty much have a well informed opinion on virtually everyone who works in the league, and it doesn't take 2 weeks to watch tape and interview people to supplement that decision. By now we should easily know that they are negotiating with woody or interviewing other coaches.

FAs are signing in 3 weeks, summer league is not far away, and our new gm hasn't made a single decision yet. It DOES look bad, particularly given our recent history and the impression that we have a bunch of bozos making decisions by committee at a snail's pace. He will have plenty of time to change my opinion, but the early results are that he fits in more with the spirit's buffoonery of the past few years than a change to an experienced GM coming in and making bold decisions.

I think you guys are too used to being hawks fans. It's the same mentality that has some thinking woody isn't that bad or even good. We love the team and we get used to the mediocrity. I'm over it.

Let's get some pros in here and make some moves.

Sacramento fired their coach today, I bet they'll sign someone before us.

That pretty well sums it up for me too Las...well said.

[Diesel]

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I have a message for Sekou.

Screw you. Let Sund work. Let's evaluate his work when he turns it in.

I feel like I'm in the twilight zone around here sometimes. I think you guys are getting too used to hawks' shenanigans. Sekou is right on the money. It doesn't take two weeks or more to decide if woody is your guy or not. As an NBA GM you should pretty much have a well informed opinion on virtually everyone who works in the league, and it doesn't take 2 weeks to watch tape and interview people to supplement that decision. By now we should easily know that they are negotiating with woody or interviewing other coaches.

FAs are signing in 3 weeks, summer league is not far away, and our new gm hasn't made a single decision yet. It DOES look bad, particularly given our recent history and the impression that we have a bunch of bozos making decisions by committee at a snail's pace. He will have plenty of time to change my opinion, but the early results are that he fits in more with the spirit's buffoonery of the past few years than a change to an experienced GM coming in and making bold decisions.

I think you guys are too used to being hawks fans. It's the same mentality that has some thinking woody isn't that bad or even good. We love the team and we get used to the mediocrity. I'm over it.

Let's get some pros in here and make some moves.

Sacramento fired their coach today, I bet they'll sign someone before us.

My point is that Sund has a lot of delicate decisions to make. Why are we rushing him. A mistake here could be tragic so I don't want him to rush into something. You say that we're used to being Hawks fans, it sounds like you're used to being a Hawks fan. You're the one bringing up previous history, blah blah blah. Sund has 30 years of experience. He's smart. Instead of looking over his shoulder every three minutes, let's just wait and see. His moves will be subject for evaluation, but hell, I'd rather he took his time and not made a mistake like trading Nique for Manning or drafting Marvin Williams...

[sturt]

While I understand the sentiment, Sekou is way over the top here.

THIS is not a Joe Johnson.

THIS is not a Harrington.

THIS is ten frickin days, not 90.

And besides, as I stated in a post last night, who's to say that Sund hasn't made his decision, but just hasn't blessed Sekou and the rest of us with that knowledge yet. In fact, until he has good reason to do so, WHY WOULD HE?

Other than Sekou's crying need for something to write about in order to justify his paycheck, and Woody's desire to know thumbs up or thumbs down, there is no motivating force here.

[khaos7]

I agree Lascar. The issue isn't about how deliberate Sund is at making this decision. The problem is, every summer, it seems the ASG and their management team takes an eternity to get things done. And usually, there is a stench that accompanies it. Whether it's a lawsuit, a disagreement between factions of the ownership group, etc, something always slows the processes in the ASG's offices that normally wouldn't limit another NBA team (Seattle aside).

So, even though it is unfair to say that Sund should make a decision now , I don't think it's unreasonable to say that this gives those on the outside the perception that things haven't changed in the ASG's offices and Sund has become indoctrinated in their ways of doing business. I think Sekou's argument is more of an indictment on the Spirit group than it is Rick Sund. If they really wanted Woody to stay on board, they could have resigned him. They hold the purse strings. Of course, that would have limited your GM search. However, this is the time for teams out of the playoffs to start accessing the draft and free agency. Certainly, you'd want your head coach to be a part of that.

More than other change (coaching, player, GM), this organization needs a culture change. That's not going to happen overnight. However, until the fanbase (and media for that matter) sees tangible and intangible evidence that the ASG has changed, they aren't handcuffing their GM, they are making basketball decisions based soley on money (this argument is debatable), and are not bickering, we'll see more articles like the one Sekou wrote.

[Lascar78]

The motivating force is that

A) in the time he's been GM, I believe 3 coaches have signed, so that's 3 less options. We've gotten lucky that those guys are probably not guys we wanted but they could have been.

B) he is missing an opportunity to establish an image as our man in charge, ready to make swift decisions. He is looking more like a guy who fits righ in the ASG quagmire than a bold agent of change. There is plenty of time to change this perception, but that's the early prognosis.

This article could have maybe waited until friday, but the points are valid. I'm sure that the lack of any real info on our direction is making fans nervous. Gm's are assessed for moves they didn't make as much as for moves they do make, which is why this criticism is fair

[Swatguy]

I gotta agree with Sekou and others that believe the coach decision is taking too long. ASG owners have to know if Woody is the coach. Sund needs to know if Woody is the coach. It is the best of All concerned to make the statement ASAP.

It seems there must be negotiations of the terms of Woody's contract, holding the decision up.

The riff between JSmith and Woody may be The Issue. If the two cannot work together it will retard all the good work of the past two seasons.

JSmith may be the big hurdle here.

[sturt]

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....We've gotten lucky that those guys are probably not guys we wanted but they could have been....

he is missing an opportunity to establish an image as our man in charge, ready to make swift decisions. He is looking more like a guy who fits righ in the ASG quagmire than a bold agent of change. There is plenty of time to change this perception, but that's the early prognosis.

This article could have maybe waited until friday, but the points are valid. I'm sure that the lack of any real info on our direction is making fans nervous. Gm's aren't just assessed for moves they didn't make as much as for moves they do make, which is why this criticism is fair

We disagree, but I don't think we disagree all that much...

1) You are right to say that Sund wasn't going to hire Del Negro or Porter or Curry. And, it doesn't stretch reality to suggest that Sund has probably known pretty much the 2, 3, or 4 guys in his pool of candidates, and that none of the teams with vacancies were ever a threat to hire out of his pool... excepting, possibly, Woody himself.

2) "Swift" decisions to one person is another person's "rush to judgment." Which is right?

Sund has said from the outset that he would be deliberate in assessing the coaching situation... which doesn't help Khaos' assertion that Sund, a veteran of 30 years, has somehow been so wishy-washy that he's already been "indoctrinated" by ASG... and btw,

THAT's the kind of "in-charge" most of us would like to see, and not someone who appears to be catering to the desires of reporters and fans outside of the process

3) We agree that the complaining maybe has launched too early... well, to you, "maybe," to me, it's not even close.

I want Sund to work on his timeline, not the fans... OR Sekou's. And if there's no compelling reason to move today, and a better reason to wait until tomorrow or beyond, I've no problem with that.

Pure conjecture of course, but if this gets to the end of the week with no news, I'd lean toward the group here who believes that there is a BOS assistant that Sund wants to talk with before he reaches a final decision.

[Packfill]

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You can't fire Woody... he's either resign or he isn't. And ASG wasn't going to fire BK since Sekou said he was offer a 1-yr extension.

A 1 year deal is essentially the same thing as telling someont to "go **** yourself" in the world of employment agreements, especially for someone that has been employed by an organization for more then 5 years.

[atlien]

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You can't fire Woody... he's either resign or he isn't. And ASG wasn't going to fire BK since Sekou said he was offer a 1-yr extension.

A 1 year deal is essentially the same thing as telling someont to "go **** yourself" in the world of employment agreements, especially for someone that has been employed by an organization for more then 5 years.

After Woody's coaching the last couple years, does he really deserve more than a 1-year extension? I'm not hating on the guy, but I think even HE would admit that he has to change some things and drastically improve as a coach.

I mean, you all saw our offensive sets last season. They were pretty brutal at times. I know we don't have the greatest personnel in players just yet, but still, Woody has to show that he is able to instill a REAL OFFENSIVE PHILOSOPHY. He hasn't done that yet. So, give him a year to prove that he can change some things.

There's no way I want the Woody of the last couple seasons to be our coach for the next 3-5 years. I'd rather we look elsewhere at this point, but if we do resign him, a 1-year deal is completely appropriate.

Here's my real issue though. I honestly believe if we sign a guy like Avery Johnson, the absolute worst-case scenario is that he performs about the same as Woody. But, his ceiling as a coach is much higher, and the best-case scenario gives us one of the better coaches in the league. So, if his floor is Woody, but his ceiling is much higher, why on earth would we not go after a guy like that? That's my main point about the coaching search in general.

[Johnnybravo4]

If it takes you 2 weeks to realize that Woody can't coach, then you aren't bright enough to be the GM. My guess is that it is not HIS decision whether to retain Woody or not. This is why nobody else wanted this job. The GM of the Hawks is merely the puppet who does what the ASG says. We will start the season with the exact same staff and lineup we had last year minus Josh Childress and maybe Salim.

[sturt]

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If it takes you 2 weeks to realize that Woody can't coach, then you aren't bright enough to be the GM. My guess is that it is not HIS decision whether to retain Woody or not. This is why nobody else wanted this job. The GM of the Hawks is merely the puppet who does what the ASG says. We will start the season with the exact same staff and lineup we had last year minus Josh Childress and maybe Salim.

No offense, but that's about as much presumption as a person could possibly pump into five sentences. But at least you admit as much when you say "My guess is..."

1. If Sund has made a decision on Woody, there would remain either (a) working out a contract, or (b) interviewing and deciding upon another person to hire... in either case, it's not inherent upon Sund to say anything before it is prudent.

2. The contention that nobody wanted the job has no basis beyond the Eeyore-ish fans' conjecture.

3. What little we know of the inner workings of ASG would suggest that, for any given issue, there's at least two sides... to suggest that ASG speaks with one voice and that that one voice wants Woody to be coach strains credulity.

4. Not even sure how it is remotely presumed that the assistant coaching staff would remain in-tact after what went on last off-season.