Coach Search and Interviews

[Buzzard]

12 minutes ago, TheNorthCydeRises said:

He's not going to have any choice but to play the young players, seeing that Schlenk has set it up for the team to be extremely young next season.

http://www.spotrac.com/nba/atlanta-hawks/cap/2018/

As you can see, we already have 11 players signed for next year, with two other guys with the ability to exercise their player option.  Dedmon almost certainly will exercise his option to seek a more lucrative deal.   Muscala, on the other hand, may not be able to get a deal worth more than 5 million per year ( or even a multi-year deal totaling 5 million per year ).  So Moose ( Musky ) may stay for one more year and get that 5 million.

That will bring us to 13 players signed if both Dedmon and Moose comes back.

And we have 4 draft picks in the top 33 in this draft.

Plumlee ( 29 ) and Baze ( 28 ) are officially the "old men" of the team, with Dedmon ( 28 ) and Moose ( 26 ) the next oldest.   If the 4 draft picks make the team, we'll have 13 players who are 25 and under on the team next year.

 

We lost Horford so no sense in signing Sap who was older. We went from being a vet team to being a young team with those two starters walking. I am not sure we resign Dedmon. If he gets a good offer or two, resigning him makes as much sense as resigning Sap.

Plumlee looks to be our veteran center with a rookie draft pick learning the NBA. Moose is a Bud guy and I think he can get maybe 3.5 to 5 million elsewhere. I am like you and don't think that will be enough for him to risk opting out. Moose could be a buy out later in the season if our rookies need their playing time.

[hazer]

26 minutes ago, Buzzard said:

If I was a betting man, I would bet on Pierce getting the job. 2nd interview, then announcement this coming week. Like you said, he fits the mold. Young, good player development background, intelligent, and knows Schlenck.

I do want to give Schelenk this: he did not jump on just one interview and make a hire. He has done multiple interviews; I think eight all together. Travis knows full well this hire and good draft picks will be his legacy. I do not think Ressler has patience for failure. I like Tony's approach. He has already proven with Bud he is not afraid to make the tough call.

Travis has three to five years to make good things happen. That is a very short time in the grand scheme of things. Lets hire a coach and have a solid draft. Go Hawks!

Agreed, looks like the job is Pierce’s if he wants it. Which IMO would be a very good hire for where the Hawks currently stand, where they’re wanting to go, and what they’re looking for in a coach. Also agree with that 3/5 timeframe, 3 years back to playoffs and sniffing the ECFs in 5. But I started counting this year. With Pud quitting on us, that probably just shifted to starting now.  

Edited May 6, 2018 by hazer

[Buzzard]

Just now, hazer said:

Agreed, looks like the job is Pierce’s if he wants it. Which IMO would be a very good hire for where the Hawks currently stand, where they’re wanting to go, and what they’re looking for in a coach. Also agree with that 3/5 timeframe, but I started counting this year. With Pud quitting on us, that probably just shifted to starting now.  

I am not sure on the starting time either. Travis was on board when we drafted Collins last June; so maybe last year does start the count down. Collins pick, this coaching hire, this draft and next seasons. Good results will be expected and rightfully so. Ressler does not strike me as someone who rewards failure.

[hazer]

1 minute ago, Buzzard said:

I am not sure on the starting time either. Travis was on board when we drafted Collins last June; so maybe last year does start the count down. Collins pick, this coaching hire, this draft and next seasons. Good results will be expected and rightfully so. Ressler does not strike me as someone who rewards failure.

I think Pud quitting on us resets the clock to now. Depending on this hire I suppose. I’d always contended Hawks would be back in the playoffs in ‘20, in The Colonel’s 3rd year. But I was calculating that with Pud still in the equation. Who knows, maybe Pierce gets hired and is all he’s cracked up to be and they pick up right where Pud left off.

[Buzzard]

13 minutes ago, hazer said:

I think Pud quitting on us resets the clock to now. Depending on this hire I suppose. I’d always contended Hawks would be back in the playoffs in ‘20, in The Colonel’s 3rd year. But I was calculating that with Pud still in the equation. Who knows, maybe Pierce gets hired and is all he’s cracked up to be and they pick up right where Pud left off.

Talent wins in the NBA. Even with bad coaching, teams with exceptional talent still make the playoffs. Next season OKC, Minny, Portland, L.A. Philly may all have coaching vacancies depending on their playoff success. Getting the best possible candidate locked up this season is imperative.

Schlenk's deal was probably a standard five year one. If great things happen he will be extended in the coming two seasons. If not, I don't see an extension or vote of confidence being offered. Losing Bud sucked but that looks to be more on Bud and Ressler than Schlenk. Bud could not get past being demoted; and Ressler was not going to tolerate being undermined or blatantly made a fool of for all the public to see.

Edited May 6, 2018 by Buzzard

[GameTime]

 

I'm a fan.

[GameTime]

http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/sixers/sixers-76ers-assistant-coach-lloyd-pierce-interviews-atlanta-hawks-20180505.html

Quote

If things go as he hopes, Lloyd Pierce will become the Atlanta Hawks’ next head coach.

The 76ers assistant coach interviewed for the Hawks’ vacant head-coaching job on Friday. Pierce has known Hawks general manager Travis Schlenk for a long time. Schlenk was the assistant general manager for Golden State when Pierce was an assistant coach there during the 2010-11 season.

“I don’t know. We’ll just let it fly,” Pierce said of his chances to get the job.

The Hawks tanked this season, finishing tied with the Dallas Mavericks for the league’s third-worst record at 24-58. After losing a tiebreaker to the Mavericks, Atlanta has the fourth-best odds to get the first-overall pick in the draft lottery at 13.7 percent. They have a 42.3 percent chance to get a top-four pick and can finish no worse than seventh.

The Hawks have two more first-round picks – Nos. 19 and 30 – and a second-rounder, No. 33.

“They’ve got a lot of young players on the roster,” Pierce said. “It’s a similar situation to what we’ve been here in the last five years. So that probably had something to do with” the Hawks interest.

Pierce, who runs the Sixers’ defense, has been on the coaching staff since the fall of 2013. The Sixers won a combined 47 games during his first three seasons. That includes the team’s 10-72 campaign in 2015-16.  Last season, the Sixers went 28-54 before improving to 52-30 this season.

“It’s a no-brainer. I would hire Lloyd Pierce yesterday,” Sixers head coach Brett Brown said Saturday. “Thinks about this: If a team came in and said, ‘We want to rebuild.’ I can’t think of a more appropriate program that has gone from where we were to where we are that has a true story to tell.”

Before Pierce joined the Sixers, he had assistant coaching stops with the Memphis Grizzlies and the Warriors. Pierce was the Cleveland Cavaliers’ player development coordinator from 2007-10. But his experience in Philly is perhaps the most impressive thing on his resume.

“It’s a statement, a testament to this program and what we’ve done here,” Pierce said of being noticed. “Obviously, people are paying attention to the ‘now.’ But what we’ve had to go through to get to this point, people recognize that throughout the industry.”

Under his guidance this season, the Sixers had one of the league’s top defenses. They were tied for sixth with the Miami Heat in opponent field-goal percentage at 44.9 percent. The Sixers were 10th in the league in points per game, averaging 106 this season.

In March 2016, Pierce’s alma mater, Santa Clara, pursued him to coach its men’s basketball program.

While he attended Santa Clara, Pierce teamed up with backcourt mate Steve Nash. He helped lead the Broncos to consecutive NCAA tournament appearances in 1995 and 1996. After a four-year professional career with stops in Mexico, Australia, Germany and Turkey,  Pierce returned to Santa Clara as an assistant coach from 2003-07 before moving to the NBA.

Pierce also coaches the Sixers’ summer-league team and has had a key role in Robert Covington’s development into arguably one of the NBA’s top three-point shooters and defenders.

 

[hazer]

33 minutes ago, GameTime said:

 

I'm a fan.

A good relationship with and respect from the likes of Steph Curry and Lebron James is never a bad thing for a Hawks coach to have. It’s part of how you attract FAs you couldn’t attract before. Players already do and want to live here.

Edited May 6, 2018 by hazer

[bleachkit]

Why would anyone choose Brett Brown's assistant over Brad Steven's assistant? The Celtics have put the 76ers to to shame this series, especially in terms of coaching.

[KB21]

1 minute ago, bleachkit said:

Why would anyone choose Brett Brown's assistant over Brad Steven's assistant? The Celtics have put the 76ers to to shame this series, especially in terms of coaching.

One is used to losing and one isn't and has options.  

[Buzzard]

16 minutes ago, bleachkit said:

Why would anyone choose Brett Brown's assistant over Brad Steven's assistant? The Celtics have put the 76ers to to shame this series, especially in terms of coaching.

That is really apples to oranges. Pierce was also hired to be Steve Kerr's assistant. That is at least equal to working for Stevens and many may think better. He cut his chops in Cleveland; then was hired by two playoff teams in Golden State and Memphis. I don't see anything wrong with his resume.

Edited May 6, 2018 by Buzzard

[KB21]

6 minutes ago, Buzzard said:

That is really apples to oranges. Pierce was also hired to be Steve Kerr's assistant. That is at least equal to working for Stevens and many may think better. He cut his chops in Cleveland; then was hired by two playoff teams in Golden State and Memphis. I don't see anything wrong with his resume.

He was hired by Keith Smart in GS, not Steve Kerr.

[Buzzard]

15 minutes ago, KB21 said:

He was hired by Keith Smart in GS, not Steve Kerr.

You are right. He did coach there before Kerr.

[GameTime]

 

Edited May 6, 2018 by GameTime

[Buzzard]

1 minute ago, GameTime said:

 

I think he will be the hire provided money and incentives can be worked out. Top players reportedly like him. His stints with other teams have been positive. I like that he had time in Europe as well. There are no negatives being mentioned in the press concerning his professional or personal life.

He could be the under the radar type hiring we need. I am pulling for him!

[DBac]

I was looking for stuff on Lloyd Pierce and well there's not a lot but I think if he doesn't work out as a coach he may be able to suit up for us

 

 

Edit: Woj says the candidates in serious consideration are Silas, Tibbets and Pierce.

Edited May 6, 2018 by DBac

[JayBirdHawk]

 

[KB21]

Ascending head coach?  LOL.

[Buzzard]

19 minutes ago, JayBirdHawk said:

 

He is about as good a source as there is. Money and contract issues will be the only thing that could get in the way.

[KB21]

Money will get in the way?  We are looking to hire a coach whose only other option is to stay in Philly as an assistant.  He's like most of the candidates Atlanta interviewed.  He's going to be cheap.