Nate McMillan fired by Atlanta Hawks with just 23 games left in 2022-23 NBA season
The Atlanta Hawks recently reshuffled their front office, including key departures.
It made sense that a coaching change followed.
The team on Tuesday fired head coach Nate McMillan, a person familiar with the situation told USA TODAY Sports. The person requested anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly until the decision is official.
Joe Prunty has been elevated to interim coach.
Though there are just 23 games remaining for Hawks, team executives believe there is time to improve and rise in the standings. Atlanta is 29-30 and in eighth place in the Eastern Conference. However, the Hawks are also just 3½ games behind the sixth-place New York Knicks.
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Why fire Nate McMillan now?
The Hawks just haven’t made enough progress since reaching the conference finals in 2021. Atlanta lost in the first round of last season’s playoffs and are in danger of falling out of play-in contention. McMillan took over for Lloyd Pierce in 2021 and spurred a deep playoff run. The Hawks hope a coaching change can provide a spark for the remaining games.
Hawks' new front office seeks new coach
In December, Travis Schlenk stepped down as president of basketball operations, and GM Landry Fields began overseeing basketball operations. Longtime NBA player and former Hawks All-Star Kyle Korver was elevated from director of player affairs and development to assistant GM in January.
It makes sense they want to put a stamp on the team by selecting a coach they believe can maximize the roster.
Landry and Korver are big on player development and want a coach who is masterful at that part of the job, but they also want a coach who can lead, build culture, hold players, including talented guard Trae Young, accountable and communicate effectively.
Who are candidates for Hawks job?
The Hawks plan to be aggressive with their search, trying to get a head start before any teams in need of a coach start looking after the season. Former Utah Jazz coach Quin Snyder, who is not working this season, and former Brooklyn coach Kenny Atkinson, now an assistant with Golden State, are former Hawks assistant coaches with strong player development backgrounds. Milwaukee assistant coach Charles Lee, a finalist for top coaching jobs last year, is also a former Hawks assistant under Mike Budenholzer, who is now Milwaukee’s coach.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Atlanta Hawks fire Nate McMillan; Joe Prunty will be interim coach
