With top decision-makers Mike Budenholzer and Wes Wilcox transitioning to new roles this offseason, the Hawks are searching for a new basketball executive to head their front office, and may be eyeing a Thunder executive. League sources tell Marc Stein (Twitter link) that OKC vice president and assistant GM Troy Weaver is “poised to emerge” as a top candidate for Atlanta.
Weaver, who is a key voice in the Thunder’s front office under Sam Presti, has been viewed for some time as a future general manager candidate. Earlier this year, ESPN’s Kevin Pelton identified Weaver as one of seven front-office “prospects” to watch.
As Pelton detailed at the time, Weaver isn’t necessarily a salary cap expert, but he’s an “obsessive student” of the NBA’s history and has a “discerning eye for raw basketball talent.” According to Pelton, people who have worked with Weaver view him as a collaborative co-worker who could be trusted to hire an outstanding and balanced staff.
Of course, it’s not clear yet how much latitude the Hawks’ new basketball operations head will be given to restructure the front office and bring in new people. While Budenholzer and Wilcox have been re-assigned, Budenholzer is still expected to have a voice in personnel decisions, and Atlanta hasn’t technically fired anyone at this point. It remains to be seen whether execs like senior advisor Rick Sund or assistant GMs Michael Blackstone and Jeff Peterson will remain with the Hawks under new leadership.
In addition to Weaver, candidates for the Hawks’ top front office job reportedly include David Griffin and Joe Dumars. More names could be added to that list in the coming days or weeks.
Perfect guy