UPDATE: Eastern Conference Head Coach Fired
UPDATE: The Atlanta Hawks have officially announced that Nate McMillan has been fired.
The Atlanta Hawks have been to the NBA Playoffs in each of the last two seasons, and in 2021 they made the Eastern Conference Finals.
However, they went into the All-Star break as the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference with a 29-30 record in 59 games.
While they are currently one of the play-in tournament teams and only 3.5 games back of the New York Knicks for the sixth seed (the final guaranteed playoff spot), the talented roster was expected to do better.
On Tuesday, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that head coach Nate McMillan has been fired.
Via Wojnarowski: "The Atlanta Hawks dismissed coach Nate McMillan, sources tell ESPN."
Wojnarowski also sent two tweets out about what the Hawks are looking for in the future and potential replacements for McMillan.
Wojnarowski's first tweet: "The Hawks are starting a search for a new head coach immediately, sources tell ESPN. Among the top characteristics in the search: player development, accountability and getting Hawks offense and defense into league's Top 10."
Wojnarowski's second tweet: "ESPN Sources: The Hawks are planning a wide-ranging search, but one candidate expected to be at the top of the list: Former Utah Jazz coach Quin Snyder. Others expected to be considered include Bucks assistant Charles Lee, Golden State assistant Kenny Atkinson."
McMillan finishes his tenure with the Hawks going 179-99 in 288 regular season games and 23-11 in 34 NBA Playoff games.
Before the Hawks, he had been the head coach of the Seattle SuperSonics, Portland Trail Blazers and Indiana Pacers.
Wojnarowski reported that Joe Prunty would be the interim head coach moving forward.
The Hawks will play their next game on Friday night when they host the Cleveland Cavaliers in Georgia.
