This past offseason’s moves were key to their possible pursuit of trading for a superstar at some point because they have the veteran contracts for salary-matching purposes, the young talent who have yet to reach their potential and all of their future first-round picks. A big, inevitable trade depends on Ressler’s patience in accelerating the path to a championship. I’ve been told by numerous people inside the organization that the plan general manager Travis Schlenk laid out at the beginning of his tenure has been followed almost perfectly without straying from his plan. That plan has been approved by Ressler, and they are in tandem in keeping on that path. Ressler knows the process to get a championship roster doesn’t happen overnight.
NBA Rumor: Hawks Front Office
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Kevin Chouinard: Travis Schlenk’s statement on hiring of Landry Fields as asst. GM: “Landry has quickly risen through the ranks, bringing a unique combination of playing experience, sharp eye for player development and strong skills as a communicator. He will be a welcome addition to our group.”
Landry Fields officially joins Hawks front office as assistant GM
Hawks to hire Landry Fields as assistant General Manager
The Hawks and 22-year NBA veteran Vince Carter have had preliminary discussions on a role for him with the team, sources said. Nothing is imminent. Carter has continued to reside in Atlanta after finishing his career with the Hawks, and had been pursuing broadcasting.
Another part of your job is the constant communication you have with your GM Travis Schlenk and your owner, Tony Ressler. How often are you in conversations with Travis and Tony? Lloyd Pierce: Travis and I have short conversations daily. He’ll send his joke my way. I’ll send my complaint or criticism his way one day and we’ll laugh everything off, or we’ll just strategize on what we should be doing right now. We talk about everything. I think the strength of our relationship has been that we keep each other up to date on both of our worlds because they’re all going to overlap. If I need to know something about Kevin Huerter, Travis got the information from his agent. It’s a good heads up. It’s a really positive relationship to have, so no one’s really ever caught off guard.
“We want progress, we expect progress, we demand progress,” Ressler said. “And (second-year coach Lloyd Pierce) feels it, (general manager Travis Schlenk) feels it and I feel it. And by the way, if that means all of us feel pressure, that’s what we signed up for.”
The Atlanta Hawks today announced multiple promotions and hires within the Basketball Operations group, including the promotion of Travis Schlenk to President of Basketball Operations and General Manager.
“We are extremely pleased with the direction that Travis and our entire basketball operations team has us heading as a franchise. He has used the draft to build an impressive young core, hired one of the NBA’s top young coaches in Lloyd Pierce and positioned us to have the cap space, draft picks and financial flexibility needed to have long-term success in the NBA,” Hawks Principal Owner Tony Ressler said.
In addition to Schlenk’s announcement, Atlanta has elevated Chelsea Lane to Vice President of Athletic Performance and Sports Medicine, Dan Martinez to Vice President of Team Operations, Derek Pierce to Vice President of Player Personnel, Dotun Akinwale Jr. to Director of Scouting, Mike McNeive to Director of Player Personnel, Daniel Starkman to Senior Manager of Basketball Operations, Nick Ressler to Manager of Basketball Operations, Paul Jesperson to Assistant Video Coordinator, Chris Mast to Data Scientist, Athletic Performance and Sports Medicine and Connor Smith to Assistant Athletic Trainer.
Chris Vivlamore: The Hawks have also named Stephen Giles as Pro Personnel Director. Was an advance scout for Hawks.
Hawks, Travis Schlenk agree to a contract extension
Zach Klein: Hawks GM Travis Schlenk and the Hawks have agreed to a multi-year contract extension per NBA league sources. The Hawks are entering their 3rd season under Schlenk and he’s set them up for a fantastic future (Trae, Collins, Huerter, Reddish..)
General manager Travis Schlenk and the Hawks have agreed to a multi-year contract extension on Monday, according to a person familiar with the situation. The Hawks have not announced the agreement but are expected to within the next day.
Marc J. Spears: The Hawks promoted Tori Miller to Assistant General Manager of the G-League College Park Skyhawks. Miller spent the last two years as Manager of Basketball Operations for the team, including time with the Erie BayHawks.
Hawks general manager Travis Schlenk is not in a hurry to fill his recently vacated position of assistant general manager. Last month Jeff Peterson left to take the same position with the Nets after seven years in the Hawks organization.“I told our group when he left that we are not going to do anything (right away),” Schlenk said last week. “We’ll worry about it in July. I want everybody focused on the draft. That’s the most important thing on the front right now. We’ll evaluate that in July. I’m not sure what we are going to do. We’ve got swarmed with people who would love this job but whether we promote from within, bring somebody in, or bring somebody in at the bottom and move up, I don’t really know.”
Chris Vivlamore: Statement from Travis Schlenk on Peterson: “Jeff grew into a key member of our basketball operations team over his seven years in Atlanta and we are appreciative of all of his work during his time here. We wish him and his wife Lauren the best moving forward.”
“We are thrilled to welcome Jeff and his wife, Lauren, to Brooklyn,” said Nets General Manager Sean Marks. “Jeff is an innovative basketball executive who shares our strategic team building vision and will fit seamlessly within our culture. His extensive scouting and front office experience will be tremendous assets to our group as we continue to move forward.”
Chris Kirschner: The Hawks have no immediate plans to replace Jeff Peterson’s position with him leaving to take the same position as the Nets’ assistant GM.
Hawks general manager Travis Schlenk made it clear that his team is certainly listening to trade offers ahead of the Feb. 7 NBA trade deadline. The team is clearly in rebuilding mode and almost certainly won’t make the playoffs this season, which makes Atlanta one of a handful of sure sellers. The Hawks were sellers last year and most people thought they would trade Marco Belinelli and Ersan Ilyasova at the deadline, but they didn’t because they couldn’t find the right deal to make. Schlenk repeated that the Hawks aren’t going to make a deal this year if it doesn’t make sense for them. “We’re looking for future assets,” Schlenk said. “We already have five picks in this draft and more than likely, two firsts and three seconds. Any of the deals we do will be future assets or a deal that maybe will increase our (cap) flexibility moving forward. We’re still on the same trajectory. We’re certainly listening to a lot of stuff, but we’re not going to do a bad deal or do a deal that will hamper our objectives.”
One of those players who has shown growth is John (Collins). When you were projecting him out of Wake Forest, did you expect this player to emerge in his second year? In his past 12 or so games, he’s averaging 20 points, 12 rebounds and shooting 40 percent from 3-point range. Travis Schlenk: “Listen, we had John ranked higher on our board than where he was drafted. We were happy to see he was still there. One of the things that we really liked about John was the growth he showed in his game from his freshman year at Wake to his sophomore year. He had a great summer. He stuck around here and got a lot of work in through a lot of change. We redid the training staff. We redid the coaching staff. It wasn’t a perfect offseason for a young player. Seeing the growth he had during his freshman to sophomore year at Wake, we expected to see some growth here, and we’re really excited what he’s going to be able to do with one continuous staff. We’re excited about him and his upside as he gets more experience and becomes an older player.”
Well, maybe not this summer, but two to three summers down the road, Trae’s ability to be a playmaker will potentially grow and become marketable for big-name free agents. When you are making your future projections, how much is that something you’re considering? Travis Schlenk: “I think, certainly, guys want to score, but we have to promise that we’re going to be a winning team. The majority of the time when free agents decide where they want to go, they are looking for a place that they want to be successful. We hope with not just Trae but all of our young guys that free agents will look at them and say, ‘You know what? If I go there, we have a chance to be a good team.’ That’s more of the plan than pinning it just on one player.”
I mean, I’m sure you’ve heard the criticism from at least a segment of the fanbase over the decision. When people do criticize your decision and see what Luka (Doncic) is doing, what do you say to them? Travis Schlenk: “It comes with the territory, right? We work in a profession where decisions are judged, and that’s what makes working in sports great. People care passionately about your decision. What I have said is we make these decisions, and our thought process is if we can turn one lottery pick into two, then that’s good. The draft is an inexact science. What makes the draft so hard is you’re trying to project, in this case, two 19-year-old kids three, four years down the line. I think it’s short-minded to judge the success of a rookie one half into a season. We want these players to be great three, four years down the road. You have to understand that there’s going to be a learning curve and a growth curve with all of these rookies. How they work every day and what they do in the summer for the next four years is what’s going to determine who they are. You can find tons of examples of this. Michael Carter-Williams was the rookie of the year several years ago for Philadelphia, and he’s out of the league now. I always go back to the Steph Curry draft because that was my first draft. Tyreke Evans was the rookie of the year and averaged 25 [points] and five [assists] that year. James Harden was in that draft. Steph Curry was in that draft. Blake Griffin was in that draft. To say 41 games into these guys’ careers that we know who they are is very shortsighted. We’ll know three, four years down the road.”
Which brings me to Hawks owner Tony Ressler. If there is one reason to feel good about the franchise’s future, it’s him. That’s bound to get lost at some point because the Hawks finished 24-58 last season and are not expected to be any good this season (notwithstanding their win Sunday in Cleveland). Ressler has significantly moved the franchise forward in several ways the past year, and equally important, he acknowledges his early missteps put the franchise in a dreadful hole. “Let’s cut the bullshit — I didn’t know what I was doing,” Ressler said. “I can blame someone else, I can blame you, I can blame my wife. But there was only one schmuck in the room, and that was me.”
Ressler purchased the Hawks in April of 2015, as a 60-win Atlanta team was beginning the playoffs. Former general manager Danny Ferry was in purgatory at the time, and the basketball operations were being run by Mike Budenholzer, the NBA’s coach of the year, and assistant general manager Wes Wilcox. Ressler did the easy and seemingly most logical thing after the playoffs: He cut ties with the polarizing Ferry, promoted Budenholzer to team president and elevated Wilcox. Boom goes the dynamite. “It was a recipe for disaster,” he said. “Total dysfunction.” Budenholzer and Wilcox constantly disagreed on direction and personnel decisions.
Ressler said he wasn’t surprised by Budeholzer’s decision at the end, nor will he speculate as to his state of mind during the season. “Bud was not the right coach for us,” he said. “He was desperate to coach a superstar. I don’t know where Bud’s head was; you’ll have to ask him. But I do think when some people have a very short life as the decision-maker, and they no longer have it, sometimes they miss it. I know this: Getting a Lloyd Pierce, a coach with his attributes who works hard and wants to help young guys get better, is exactly what I wanted and exactly what Travis wanted.”
The Atlanta Hawks Basketball Club today announced several additions and promotions within the basketball operations department. The new hires include Chelsea Lane as Executive Director of Athletic Performance and Sports Medicine, where she will oversee the Hawks’ Athletic Performance Team and medical staff. Additional new hires to the APT staff include Michael Irras Head Strength & Conditioning Coach, John Dusel as Assistant Athletic Trainer/Strength & Conditioning, and Ty Terrell as Assistant Strength & Conditioning Coach. Dwight Lutz recently joined the organization as Director of Basketball Strategy & Analytics, Dipesh Mistry has been hired as Head Video Coordinator, veteran NBA executive Larry Riley has been named Senior Advisor, Nick Ressler has been added as Coordinator of Basketball Operations and Victor Williams has been named as a Security Consultant.
Promotions include Rod Higgins, who has been named Vice President of Basketball Operations, and Daniel Starkman, who has been elevated to Manager of Basketball Operations. Additionally, Therian Williams moves into an Assistant Video Coordinator role.
Michael Cunningham: Hawks name Derek Pierce as GM of G League affiliate in Erie, Pa. Replaces Malik Rose, who joined Pistons front office. Pierce will maintain current role as Hawks dir of pro personnel.
Marc J. Spears: Former NBA forward Malik Rose is expected to be hired as the @Detroit Pistons assistant general manager tomorrow, a source told @TheUndefeated. The two-time champion has been the @Atlanta Hawks basketball operations manager since 2015.
Shams Charania: Sources: Atlanta Hawks executive Malik Rose has agreed to a deal to become assistant general manager of the Detroit Pistons.
When Atlanta Hawks general manager Travis Schlenk found out who other teams were planning on drafting and that he’d be able to select Kevin Huerter with the 19th overall pick, there was no need to trade up to get the Maryland guard. Schlenk told 95.7 The Game in San Francisco on Friday that he had a deal in place to acquire the No. 17 pick from the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for a draft pick, but he never had to make that deal because the media were projecting picks prior to them being announced.
Michael Cunningham: Schlenk says he passed on bigs available at No. 3 because Hawks had Doncic and Young rated higher. Also because his “personal preference” is for play-makers over bigs.
Jeff Schultz: Hawks GM Travis Schlenk on Luka Doncic vs. Trae Young: “In all honesty, our group was split between the two.”
Michael Cunningham: Hawks GM Schlenk on Young and Schroder: “Both guys can play together.”
Michael Cunningham: Schlenk: “We wanted to get players we want and be able to accumulate more assets. We were able to do both.”
Shams Charania: The Detroit Pistons have offered a front office role to Atlanta Hawks executive Malik Rose and sides are in conversations toward deal, league sources tell Yahoo. Rose was awarded G League Executive of Year this season with Erie.
Q. (Cunningham) I like Jaren Jackson Jr. a lot. He’s very good defensively and seems he has good potential as a scorer around the basket. What’s your opinion on that? A. (Jeff Peterson, Hawks assistant GM) He’s intriguing because he’s so young. It’s almost like there is a lot of room to mold and to help grow him. He’s obviously been coached well with Michigan State and (Tom) Izzo. I do think he’s pretty good with both hands around the basket. Good touch. And with him it’s pretty neat because he’s not only capable of scoring on the interior but he can also step outside and shoot the basketball. He shot at a very high clip this year (38-for-96 on 3-pointers, 39.6 percent). He’s confident in his shot. He’s an unbelievable rim protector. Very good on the defensive end. Just instincts and plays hard and doesn’t give up. He blocks shots, challenges shots. It’s very exciting when you are watching him.
Q. Can he defend in space on switches? A. (Jeff Peterson, Hawks assistant GM) Yeah, I think he’s pretty good in that area. But the thing is, with all of these guys, they have to get better. When you are going against the guy from Iowa vs. you are going against John Wall, it’s a little different. But I think he can. I think in time he can get there. Some guys, nobody can guard. You are not staying in front of John Wall; it’s probably not happening. The length and the willingness will help Jackson.
Q. (Cunningham) Americans don’t get to see Doncic very much. I watched some of his games on video and it seems his vision, his passing and play-making are off the charts. Are those the things that make him a top prospect? A. (Jeff Peterson, Hawks assistant GM): Yes. Just his ability to make guys better, make the game easier for guys really stands out. Up until this (Rockets-Warriors) playoff series I think you saw a lot of ball movement especially with Golden State. I think they reverted back to the (isolation plays) this series just because of the (defensive) switching that was occurring. But, in general, the NBA is moving more toward ball movement, player movement and (Doncic) really thrives in that area. It’s his vision, his willingness to make passes, his unselfishness. His size allows him to see over guys and find guys in different angles. He’s a decent shooter. The thing with him is, he’s not afraid to take big shots and he makes big shots. He has a ton of confidence to be able to do what he’s doing at that age at that level in that league is pretty impressive.
Is he a point guard? A wing? Or does it even matter? Jeff Peterson: I don’t think it matters. He’s comfortable with the ball in his hands and he’s comfortable without the ball in his hands, too. He’s shown that with the Slovenian national team with he played with (Miami Heat point guard) Goran Dragic. Dragic had the ball a lot and they would play off one another. And Doncic is smart so he can figure it out with or without the ball. I think he’s one of those guys that you put him out there and you figure it out. He’s a guy you want out there because he’s reliable and comfortable with the ball in his hands and typically makes good decisions.
Vincent Ellis: Another name to add to the #Pistons front office search: Malik Rose, Atlanta #Hawks manager of basketball operations and GM for the Hawks’ G-League affiliate in Erie, Pa.
David Hein: Speaking in Germany at a German Basketball Federation DBB press conference, Dennis Schröder about the current situation with the Atlanta Hawks: “I don’t know what the organization has in mind, that’s why I am going back in a week. Of course, Atlanta is my city, I was drafted there, have a lot of memories there, but like I said, I have to look individually at what’s best for me.”
David Hein: An elaboration from Dennis Schröder about the next few days and the up-coming talks with the @ATLHawks: “I will talk to the general manager and owner of the team and we will talk about the organization and what they want to do in the future. My agent will also be there and he will talk to them tomorrow and Wednesday and see how it continues on.”
David Hein: Dennis Schröder told a press conference in Germany that @Pacers (he has a good relationship with Victor Oladipo) and @Bucks would be teams he could imagine being traded to: “Of course I have my thoughts and my friends with other teams. For example, Indiana or Milwaukee wouldn’t be too bad. Those are the teams where you can say the organization is going in the right direction.”
David Hein: Dennis Schröder said he wants to stay in Atlanta if it looks like things are going in the right direction. But he said he wants to compete while in his prime: “I will be 25 in September and of course you want to win a title some time. In my prime – 25, 26, 27, 28, 29 – I want to compete. I cannot be second to last in the Eastern Conference. That’s why I will have these talks with the Hawks.”
The Hawks are following a rebuilding path like Philadelphia’s. When Hawks general manager Travis Schlenk set out to find a new coach, he said the person should have the ability to connect with young players and help them develop their skills. Pierce’s Hawks candidacy was buoyed by working with Schlenk for part of one season in Golden State.
Schlenk interviewed seven candidates for head coach. The Hawks hoped to hire David Fizdale before he accepted the head coach job with the Knicks. After that, Pierce emerged as the favorite among a group of finalists that also included Blazers assistant Nate Tibbetts, Hornets assistant Stephen Silas and Celtics assistant Jay Larranaga.
“This is a day I’ve been working towards for a long time and it’s an honor to be the head coach of the Atlanta Hawks,” Lloyd Pierce said. “I have great respect for Travis and strong belief in his plan to bring a championship to the city of Atlanta. After spending time with ownership, it’s clear they have a deep investment in and commitment to making this a model organization. This opportunity is a perfect fit for me, and I’m eager to get started.”
Chris Mannix: Hawks announce Lloyd Pierce as head coach
Sam Amick: Hawks tab Lloyd Pierce as head coach, come to terms on three-year deal with a team option for a fourth. Sixers assistant will partner with new GM Travis Schlenk in rebuilding effort. Press conference Monday...
While speaking to Business Insider, Hill admitted that he might not be able to come up with fixes for tanking because of his role with the Atlanta Hawks. “Look, I’m Vice Chairman of the Atlanta Hawks, so I’m probably not, you know…,” Hill said in response to Silver’s comments. “I’ll defer to Adam Silver and the brain trust in the NBA to figure out what’s in the best interest of the NBA.”
By contrast, Collins is the only one of Atlanta’s potential building blocks selected by current general manager Travis Schlenk, who took over last spring “The way I’ve been playing, obviously people are going to expect a certain way for me to play going forward and are going to expect for me to progress and get better,” Collins said. “So, obviously, it’s a little bit of pressure.”
KL Chouinard: Schlenk said yes when asked if he or Coach Bud had sat down to talk to players 1-on-1: “We don’t feel pressured to do anything because of (future flexibility), but if there’s an opportunity that makes sense for us, then we’re certainly going to take a hard look at it.”
(On having 1-on-1 discussions with players about trade rumors) “Yeah. That’s one of the downsides to being where we are right now. It’s real easy to throw our guys out in the media, right? There are some rumors that are true and certainly some that aren’t, especially when you start looking at, you know, I think there for one stretch that every single day one of our guys was on the cover of HoopsHype. I would say this: We’re not shopping any of our guys. Teams know where we are, and team have interest in our guys just like we have interest in our guys. “We talk with the players directly. I communicate with the agents anytime there’s something that’s out there that is completely false, we step up right away and say, ‘Listen. Don’t worry about it.’ “I’ve jokingly said to Garin (Narain, Hawks Senior VP of PR) earlier, ‘We’re just kind of low-hanging fruit out there right now. It’s really easy to throw us out there.”
Michael Gallagher: According to Chris Mannix of NBCS Boston and Yahoo!, several GMs have told him “everyone on the roster is available” from the Hawks roster (on Celtics broadcast).
The Atlanta Hawks Basketball Club has hired nationally-recognized, sports sales and marketing executive Michael Drake as its Senior Vice President of Corporate Partnerships and Premium Sales. He most recently served as SVP & Chief Revenue Officer of Business Operations for AMB Sports & Entertainment (AMBSE), overseeing all ticket operations, service initiatives and marketing and analytic strategies for suite, loge, season ticket and seat license sales for the Atlanta Falcons, Atlanta United and Mercedes-Benz Stadium (MBS).
The worst thing you can be in the NBA is mediocre, and that’s where the Hawks were. Majority owner Tony Ressler had to be convinced to let Millsap go, but he signed off on not re-signing Millsap, and then went all-in on Process South, replacing former GM Wes Wilcox in May — who remains with the franchise as a consultant — with Schlenk, who was the assistant GM with the Warriors the last five years. “Well, we had two choices, the way I saw it,” Ressler said Friday, in the new owners’/VIP digs, which are hard off the new Hawks Bar that is directly behind the baseline, steps off the floor — one of the many parts of the Philips renovation, which is scheduled to conclude next year.”
“We never had the choice of being a contender. We weren’t,” Ressler said. “I saw the team go from 60 wins to 48 to 43. And we didn’t make many changes going from 60 to 48 to 43. We thought we made additions. Let’s just say I concluded, with Travis’ help, with Bud’s help, I concluded that we were not going in the right direction. Truly, there are three options in the NBA, I would argue: being a contender, being a competitive team, and being young and fun. At least that would be my opinion. And we didn’t have the option of being a contender. So we could be competitive, or more competitive, and maybe, shall we say, with a whole bunch of higher-priced vets that made us older and made our payroll less flexible, and made our future more cloudy.”
“Organizationally, this is the way we’re organized now, and this gives us the best chance going forward to have a chance in Atlanta to have success,” Mike Budenholzer said. “I’m passionate about coaching. I love coaching. But I’m passionate about everything. And I think, I believe in our ownership, I believe in all the changes we’ve made and what we’re doing going forward.”
How serious do you think (Hawks GM) Travis Schlenk is about trading Dennis Schroder? And what might those trades look like? Here’s one thing I know about Travis Schlenk: He wants nothing to do with long-term contracts. Schlenk craves flexibility, and his early moves – trading Howard, making little effort to retain Paul Millsap – tell me he’s thinking well into the future. Schroder is a little different though. There’s legitimate talent there, which can’t be dismissed. But more importantly, there is no real market for him. I ran Schroder’s name by a few team executives this week, and each recoiled. There’s a toxicity surrounding Schroder right now. A reputation as a selfish player has gained significant traction throughout the league. His arrest on battery charges last month – an incident the Hawks have deemed “unacceptable” – is an example teams cite of his immaturity. Said a Western Conference executive: “I don’t need that kind of headache.” Perhaps Atlanta could give Schroder away. But at 24, Schroder is a terrific talent. Maybe the Hawks can work with him and hope he matures. Really, they don’t have much of a choice.
The Atlanta Hawks Basketball Club today announced that General Manager/Head of Basketball Operations Travis Schlenk will be featured on a weekly segment this season on SportsRadio 92-2 The Game, the team’s official sports talk partner and flagship station. Schlenk was hired on May 25, 2017 after spending 12 seasons with the defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors.
With weekly segments featuring Head Coach Mike Budenholzer and CEO Steve Koonin returning once again to the station, Hawks leadership will be featured on the Hawks’ radio flagship on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays during the season. “We are very pleased to continue our great relationship with the Atlanta Hawks,” said Terry Foxx, Program Director at SportsRadio 92-9 The Game. “Having Coach Bud along with CEO Steve Koonin and now the new GM of the Hawks, Travis Schlenk, will further enhance our overall coverage of the Hawks. When you add the legendary voice of the Hawks, Steve Holman, we have a continued amazing partnership with the Hawks and our fans.”
Bembry was familiar with the Hawks’ interest in him. And when then-general manager Wes Wilcox and head coach Mike Budenholzer called to let Bembry know the Hawks selected him at No. 21, it was a bittersweet moment. His childhood dream come true, Bembry had a quiet moment with his mother and grandmother in tribute to his brother before hugging his screaming family and friends. “I was in the hallway on the phone and I waited for them to call my name and then I was just running around, running around,” Bembry said. “Everybody just started yelling. Yeah, emotions were around. A lot of energy. At the time of the call, I was first thinking, ‘I made it to my dream.’ At first, it was just me, my mom and my grandmother in the room just in there, happy, of course, of what happened. Of course, we talked about my little brother and how much he would have been happy for me.”
Judging by the questions each man got this week, there is interest in how new Hawks GM Travis Schlenk and coach Mike Budenholzer will coexist. That makes some sense because Schlenk now has the franchise-shaping power that Budenholzer once had. But it also seems there’s a perception that there’s no way Budenholzer is OK with Schlenk’s rebuilding plan and that this will cause friction between the two. Both Budenholzer and Schlenk said they are on the same page, but that won’t stop outside speculation about potential rifts. Maybe I’m weird, but I’ve never had much interest in interpersonal front-office drama. Leaders have different personalities and styles. Roles change and evolve in professional sports, and at some point, all coaches and executives must adjust. Ultimately they are judged by the final product.
Adrian Wojnarowski: Sources: Karnisovas and Wilcox will travel to Milwaukee for additional meetings with organization officials later this week.
The Atlanta Hawks are working on a contract agreement to hire Golden State Warriors executive Travis Schlenk as general manager, league sources told The Vertical. Barring any unforeseen snags, a deal could be completed as soon as Wednesday, league sources told The Vertical.
Hawks to hire Travis Schlenk as GM?
Adrian Wojnarowski: Golden State assistant GM Travis Schlenk has emerged as a frontrunner for Atlanta Hawks GM opening, league sources tell @The Vertical.
Adrian Wojnarowski: Travis Schlenk is Atlanta’s choice to become new GM and sides are entering into contract talks, league sources tell @The Vertical.
ESPN Cleveland: Windhorst: Griff could be a candidate in other places, including Milwaukee. Not sure Atlanta will wait. Griff wants a substantial offer.
The Cavs have also denied permission to the Atlanta Hawks for Griffin to interview for their open general manager position, sources said. Griffin, whose contract expires at the end of July, has recently held talks with Cavs owner Dan Gilbert about his future with the team but nothing had been agreed to as of Monday afternoon, sources said.
The interview is expected to occur Tuesday in Los Angeles, sources say, and it is believed the organization isn’t looking to drag out the hiring process.
Washington Wizards vice president of basketball operations Tommy Sheppard and Golden State Warriors assistant general manager Travis Schlenk have emerged as the new names of note in the Atlanta Hawks’ front office search, according to league sources.
Sources told ESPN that the Hawks have conducted interviews with both Sheppard and Schlenk this week and continue to have interest in ESPN television analyst Chauncey Billups as well as Boston Celtics assistant general manager Mike Zarren as they search for a new lead voice for basketball operations.
Marc Stein: The Atlanta Hawks have secured permission to interview Warriors executive Travis Schlenk for their front office search, league sources say
The pursuit of Olshey signals a possible willingness within ownership to make a significant financial commitment to hire an elite league executive. To pry Olshey, or any sitting top basketball decision-maker, Atlanta would undoubtedly have to offer draft or financial compensation to a team. Those conversations never started with the Blazers, sources said. It is unclear if Olshey would’ve had interest in discussing Atlanta’s opening with team owners. He joined the Blazers as the franchise’s top basketball executive in 2012, after leaving the Clippers.
Atlanta has been meeting with candidates this week, with majority owner Tony Ressler and minority owner Grant Hill conducting meetings with candidates, league sources told The Vertical. Hawks officials spent several hours interviewing Washington Wizards VP of basketball operations Tommy Sheppard mid-week, league sources told The Vertical.
The Hawks have conducted several preliminary telephone interviews, including with Chauncey Billups, a six-time NBA All-Star guard and a current television studio analyst, league sources said.
Atlanta has also made contact with ex-player and television analyst Brent Barry, league sources said.
Adrian Wojnarowski: Atlanta tried to take a big swing for Olshey, Portland’s President of Basketball Operations. Blazers ownership didn’t budge.
January 19, 2021 | 3:28 am EST Update
CJ McCollum to miss time
Shams Charania: Trail Blazers star CJ McCollum has a fractured left foot and will miss an extended period of time, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium .
Victor Oladipo eyeing future with Rockets?
Guard Victor Oladipo exuded optimism about the Houston Rockets after his franchise debut, presenting quite a contrast to James Harden’s final comments as a member of the franchise. “I know that better days are ahead for the Houston Rockets, and I’m looking forward to being a part of those special days,” Oladipo said after his 32-point, nine-assist performance in a 125-120 road loss to the Chicago Bulls on Monday night.
Alykhan Bijani: Victor Oladipo on Stephen Silas: “He just has a great personality and spirit to him. I’m looking forward to playing for him. We can do something very special here, we just gotta continue to buy into it. The sky is the limit if we continue to do that.” #Rockets
JB Bickerstaff: Cavaliers coach J.B. Bickerstaff said Kevin Porter Jr. wasn’t at practice today and added, “We all want to see Kevin be successful, and I still feel that way. Whatever it is that happens in the future for him, I hope nothing but the best for him.”
“In all honesty, I would say I would do it, I’m not going to lie,” Allen said. “If you look at what happened with the Lakers, they did the same thing. They went and got their ring. If I take myself out of it, I would’ve loved to stay in Brooklyn, but I understand that in an opportunity like that, you have to go do it.”
CJ McCollum: People just wanted to dismiss the fact that James cold blooded. Real hooper. . Side note: KD still unstoppable. When he miss it’s just bc he missed not bc someone stopped him.
