The Atlanta Hawks have fired head coach Nate McMillan, the team announced on Tuesday (Feb. 21).
Sitting at 29-30, the Hawks are currently eighth in the Eastern Conference with 3.5 games separating them and the sixth seed, which would avoid the play-in. Assistant coach Joe Prunty will become the interim head coach.
“I would like to thank Nate for his leadership and professionalism during his time with the Hawks. He is truly a class act, and we appreciate the graciousness and work ethic he brought with him every day,” Hawks general manager Landry Fields said in a statement. “Decisions like these, especially in-season, are always extremely difficult, but we believe it’s in the best interest of our team to move forward with another voice leading the way.”
It was announced today that Nate McMillan has been relieved of his head coaching duties.https://t.co/Scq6G3Rg5W
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) February 21, 2023
Since becoming interim head coach of the Hawks in 2021, McMillan went 99-80 and led Atlanta to their second conference finals in franchise history in his first year. He led the team to their first-ever conference finals win that same season, eventually dropping the series in six games to the Milwaukee Bucks. The playoff success led the organization to hire McMillan on July 5, 2021.
Over 19 seasons as a head coach, McMillan has compiled a 760-668 record, good enough for 18th on the NBA’s all-time wins list. In 11 trips to the postseason, his teams have a 28-48 record, including a 11-12 record with the Hawks.
The Atlanta Hawks dismissed coach Nate McMillan, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/Jjh3qlCnCX
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 21, 2023
Sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski that the Hawks’ search for a new head coach will start immediately, and the top characteristics the organization is looking for include player development, accountability and getting the team’s defense and offense into the NBA’s top 10.
According to Wojnarowski, the Hawks are planning a wide-ranging search, but one candidate expected to be at the top of the list is former Utah Jazz head coach Quin Snyder. In eight seasons in Utah from 2014 to 2022, Snyder went 372-264 and made the playoffs six times, although he never made it past the conference semifinals. He was the Hawks head assistant coach during the 2013-14 season.
Other candidates expected to be considered include Bucks assistant Charles Lee and Golden State Warriors assistant Kenny Atkinson.
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