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Hawks Notes: Fields, Collins, Snyder, Offseason

April 29th, 2023 at 10:49am CST by Rory Maher

In his end-of-season media availability following the Hawks‘ first-round loss to Boston, general manager Landry Fields acknowledged that the fit between Trae Young and Dejounte Murray wasn’t always smooth in 2022/23. However, he said he was pleased with their progress under Quin Snyder, who replaced Nate McMillan as head coach in late February.

“I was on record by saying at first, it’s to be expected that it might look a little clunky,” Fields said, per Lauren Williams of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “You’re asking two primary ball-handlers to now share a backcourt with each other, but two very talented play-making ball-handlers. And it’s had its ups. It’s had its downs, to be honest.

“I think that we’ve all seen that where it looks a little clunky. But there’s also times where it’s been beautiful to watch. They play for each other. … And so, it’s still working in a complementary sense. But I think we got a great taste of it in the last month here. I think Quin has been able to figure out a great way for those two to coexist in a way that is going to enhance our group, but Trae Young and Dejounte Murray is your backcourt. That’s a fun backcourt.”

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Within the same piece from Williams, Fields was noncommittal about John Collins‘ future with the team, but that doesn’t mean Atlanta doesn’t value him. Collins has been featured in trade rumors for multiple seasons. “I think it’s the same that I’ve spoken about in the past – John’s name, it comes up a lot. He’s a good player. It should. A lot of teams value him, and we have a lot of value in him,” Fields said.
At his own press conference, Snyder said he was “grateful” that the players have embraced his coaching philosophies, Williams writes in a subscriber-only story for The Atlanta Journal-Consitutuion. When asked if he was proud of how the team competed in its six-game series against the Celtics, Snyder said it’s going to take time for the group to “learn how to win together,” especially at the highest level. “You can’t skip steps,” Snyder said as part of a larger quote. “You just can’t. And you may have success in a certain context at a certain time. But that may not always reflect where you are. So I would say it’s great that we competed. That’s a good step, feeling like you belong. But we’ve got a lot of work to do. There’s no question about that.
In another story (subscriber link), Williams writes that multiple players praised Snyder’s individualized approach to coaching at their own media exit interviews. “The focus that they have on the development, especially for the young guys, like, every team doesn’t have what we call, like, the ‘breakfast club,’” said guard Donovan Williams, who is on a two-way contract. “So the guys that really don’t do a lot of minutes in the game, we come in before everybody we worked out before games. We play five-on-five with the coaches, like every team doesn’t do that.”
Addressing the defense and payroll will likely be the top offseason priorities for the Hawks, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks, who provides his offseason guide for Atlanta (Insider link). The Hawks are projected to be a taxpaying team for the first time under owner Tony Ressler, and trading Collins to shed salary would take them out of the tax, Marks notes.

Southeast Notes: Young, Murray, Washington, Wizards

April 26th, 2023 at 8:57am CST by Arthur Hill

Trae Young saved the Hawks‘ season with a game-winning shot Tuesday night, and their series with the Celtics no longer seems like a mismatch as they head back to Atlanta, writes Jeff Schultz of The Athletic. Young drilled a 30-footer with 2.8 seconds left to cap off an improbable victory in Game 5. He scored the team’s final 14 points on a night where he played 44 minutes and didn’t check out of the game in the second half.

“I’ve been owning the moment my whole life. That’s what I do,” he said.

The heroic performance was gratifying for Young, who got off to a miserable start in the series, making 14 of 40 shots and committing 10 turnovers in the first two games in Boston. He has scored 35 and 38 points in the last two contests and has the Hawks believing they can pull off an upset.

“You look at his eyes and there was a calm,” coach Quin Snyder said. “Sometimes that happens in the middle of a storm.”

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The Hawks won Game 5 without Dejounte Murray, who was serving a one-game suspension for making contact with an official following Sunday’s contest. At Tuesday’s shootaround, Murray indicated that his issues with referee Gediminas Petraitis date back to his time in San Antonio, but added that he takes responsibility for the incident (video link from Coley Harvey of ESPN).
Re-signing restricted free agent P.J. Washington will likely be an offseason priority for the Hornets, according to Melissa Melvin-Rodriguez of The Charlotte Observer. After not receiving a rookie scale extension last fall, Washington responded with his best NBA season, averaging a career-high 15.7 PPG and ranking fourth in the league in clutch field goal percentage. Charlotte’s front office considers Washington part of the team’s young core and he has expressed a desire to stay there, Melvin-Rodriguez adds. She examines the entire roster, stating that Dennis Smith Jr. will likely get a new contract this summer, Kelly Oubre‘s fate will depend on what offers he gets in free agency and Gordon Hayward may not be moveable right away but could be more attractive at the trade deadline due to his expiring contract.
As the Wizards search for a replacement for dismissed general manager Tommy Sheppard, the NBA issued a memo stating that VP of player programs John Thompson III and assistant GM Brett Greenberg are currently running the basketball operations department, tweets Fred Katz of The Athletic.

Hawks’ Dejounte Murray Suspended For Game 5 On Tuesday

April 24th, 2023 at 4:29pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The league has suspended Hawks guard Dejounte Murray one game without pay for making inappropriate contact with a game official, the league’s communications department tweets. He will serve his suspension in Game 5 on Tuesday.

Murray also verbally abused the official at the conclusion of the Hawks’ 129-121 loss to the Celtics in Game 4 of their first-round playoff series on Sunday.

It’s possible Murray will miss the final game of Atlanta’s season, as the Hawks trailing 3-1 in the series and facing elimination as they head back to Boston.

Murray will lose $93,622 for the suspension, Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets. Bogdan Bogdanovic, AJ Griffin and Saddiq Bey could all see more action in his absence.

Dejounte Murray Faces Possible Suspension For Bumping Official

April 24th, 2023 at 7:31am CST by Arthur Hill

The NBA has launched an investigation into the actions of Hawks guard Dejounte Murray following Sunday’s loss to the Celtics, according to Tim Bontemps of ESPN.

As he was leaving the court, Murray made contact with referee Gediminas Petraitis (video link). Murray also pointed and yelled at someone before heading to the locker room, Bontemps adds.

The Hawks didn’t make Murray available to the media after the game, so he wasn’t able to explain what happened.

Bontemps notes that the league normally imposes suspensions for players who make contact with officials. He cites the example of Celtics forward Grant Williams, who was suspended for one game after being ejected in October.

Bontemps also points out that suspension decisions in the playoffs are typically issued before the next game in the series, which means any discipline for Murray could be announced today. The teams will meet again Tuesday night in Boston with the Celtics holding a 3-1 lead.

Murray has been one of Atlanta’s most productive players in the series, averaging 25.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 2.3 steals through the first four games.

Southeast Notes: Young, Murray, Wizards, Bridges, Love

April 22nd, 2023 at 6:43pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Hawks still face long odds in their first-round series with the Celtics, but they have to be encouraged by the way Trae Young and Dejounte Murray played together Friday night, writes Jeff Schultz of The Athletic. Atlanta avoided a 3-0 deficit as the backcourt combination turned in one of its best games since Murray was acquired last summer. They combined for 57 points in the Game 3 victory, with 38 of those coming in the second half.

“At one point, I was just like, I should just keep quiet and let them do it,” coach Quin Snyder said. “They had some isolation situations where they created for themselves and for other guys, and a lot of that was them just figuring it out. People feed off that.”

Schultz notes that there have been questions about whether they can be effective together ever since the Hawks sent three first-round picks and other assets to the Spurs in exchange for Murray. Former general manager and team president Travis Schlenk reportedly didn’t support the deal, and the results hadn’t been positive during a 41-41 season.

A recent report indicated Atlanta will consider trading Young this summer, but Schultz states that Friday’s performance may show that he and Murray can find a way to make things work.

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The Wizards may dream about landing a big name like Raptors president Masai Ujiri or Warriors general manager Bob Myers to replace fired GM Tommy Sheppard, but they’re better off pursuing someone who has succeeded in building a team in a mid-level market, contends Ava Wallace of The Washington Post. She names Pelicans GM Trajan Langdon, Knicks GM Scott Perry, Bucks assistant GM Milt Newton and Timberwolves president of basketball operations Tim Connelly as potential targets.
The NBA was too lenient with former Hornets forward Miles Bridges when it agreed to reduce his 30-game suspension to 10 games for next season, argues David Aldridge of The Athletic. Aldridge disagrees with the league’s reasoning that Bridges would have served 20 games of that suspension if he had signed with a team this year and notes that the CBA gives commissioner Adam Silver the power to invoke a harsher penalty under its “misconduct” section.
Kevin Love is back in the Heat‘s starting lineup for tonight’s Game 3 against the Bucks, tweets Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Chiang observes that the new starting five of Love, Gabe Vincent, Max Strus, Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo has only played together for two minutes in the series and 13 minutes during the regular season.

Southeast Notes: Brey, Hawks, Murray, Herro, Magic

April 18th, 2023 at 1:51pm CST by Luke Adams

Mike Brey, the longtime head coach at Notre Dame, will be joining Quin Snyder‘s Hawks coaching staff for the 2023/24 season, sources tell Tom Noie of The South Bend Tribune. Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN has since confirmed the news.

Noie’s report suggests Brey will be an assistant coach for the Hawks, though Wojnarowski says his specific role hasn’t yet been finalized and won’t be until sometime after Atlanta’s season ends.

Brey coached the Fighting Irish from 2000-23, stepping down from his position earlier this year. He previously served as an assistant coach at Duke under Mike Krzyzewski from 1987-95. Snyder played his college ball for the Blue Devils from 1985-89, so his relationship with Brey dates back approximately three-and-a-half decades.

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The Hawks hope to re-sign Dejounte Murray when he reaches free agency in 2024 — a quick playoff exit this spring won’t do them any favors from a recruiting perspective, writes Jeff Schultz of The Athletic. Murray brushed off comments about his contract situation, but agreed with the suggestion that money wouldn’t be the most important factor in his decision. “Winning,” Murray said. “Winning. That’s it. Winning. That’s it. Winning.”
Speaking on Tuesday to reporters, including Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel (Twitter links), Heat sharpshooter Tyler Herro said that he’ll undergo surgery on his broken right hand this Friday. Herro added that, based on his recovery timeline, he has been told the earliest he could potentially return would be for the NBA Finals. While Miami won Game 1 of its series with Milwaukee, the Heat are an extreme long shot to make that sort of playoff run.
The Magic finished six games out of a play-in spot this season and 11 games back of the No. 6 seed in the East, but they’ll be “very upset” if they’re not a playoff team next season, according to guard Markelle Fultz. Many of Fultz’s teammates agree with that sentiment, as Khobi Price of The Orlando Sentinel writes. “Guys don’t like to look at it as, ‘We got to make the playoffs,’ or ‘We got to win a (title)’ to be successful,” Wendell Carter Jr. said. “But we’re at a pretty good point where we can say that now. Guys want to win now. That comes with winning — making it to the playoffs.”

Southeast Notes: Martin, Ball, Cooks, Murray

March 20th, 2023 at 11:59am CST by Arthur Hill

Cody Martin is doing his best to help the Hornets as a leader from the sidelines, but it’s not a role he enjoys, writes Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer. A troublesome left knee has limited Martin to seven games in his first season since signing a four-year, $31MM contract.

Martin’s injury problems began in training camp, Boone notes, and he was only able to suit up for one of the team’s five preseason games. Martin played just 56 seconds in the regular season opener and underwent arthroscopic surgery on November 11. He returned in early January after missing 37 games, but could only play six more times before being sidelined again.

“You never go into a season thinking something like this is going to happen,” Martin said. “You are not really ever prepared for it. It’s very, very frustrating. This is the first time I’ve ever had to sit out for an extended period of time. So I’m just trying to do my best to be positive mentally and just continue to do whatever I can rehab-wise and do what the training staff is saying. Unfortunately, it’s taken this long. I’m just trying to be smart with it, I’m just trying to be consistent with it, just do whatever I can.”

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After undergoing ankle surgery three weeks ago, Hornets guard LaMelo Ball said he’s dedicated to rehab and plans to be 100% by the start of training camp, Boone tweets. Ball added that he still enjoys being in Charlotte, saying, “Yeah, I love it here.”
Fresh off winning an NBL title with the Sydney Kings, Xavier Cooks hopes to help the Wizards with their playoff push, per Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington. The Australian forward signed with the team on Friday and made his NBA debut Saturday night. “It’s been a lifelong dream to get here,” Cooks said. “It’s taken me 27 years to get here. I’m, what, five years out of college? My dream is a little bit different than everybody else’s.”
Hawks guard Dejounte Murray feels like he got “closure” when Spurs fans gave him a warm reception in his return to San Antonio for Sunday’s game, tweets Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News. “I felt like it was what it should be,” Murray said. “We showed nothing but love, both sides, from myself, the fans, the organization.”

Southwest Notes: Morant, Brooks, Murray, Pelicans, Rockets

March 18th, 2023 at 9:53pm CST by Arthur Hill

Tonight marks the final game of Ja Morant‘s suspension, but coach Taylor Jenkins confirmed that Morant is unlikely to play on Monday when the Grizzlies host the Mavericks, writes Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. Monday will be Morant’s first day back at the team facility after being out of action since March 3, and Jenkins said his All-Star guard will need some time to get ready.

“It’s a good chance he’s probably out for the Monday game because it’s going to be his first day back with the team,” Jenkins said. “Our anticipation is he’s at least out Monday, and then we’ll cross the bridge for Wednesday as we get a little bit closer.”

The Grizzlies will host the Rockets on Wednesday and Friday, and although Morant is likely to play in at least one of those games, Cole states that the team hasn’t reached a final decision. He adds that Morant’s minutes will be monitored whenever he returns.

“From a basketball standpoint, we know this guy and how he is wired,” Jenkins said. “I know he’s putting in work, staying ready, and he’s going to be chomping at the bit to get out there with his teammates on Monday and Tuesday, and we’ll see what Wednesday holds.”

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The Grizzlies are talking to league officials about rescinding Dillon Brooks‘ most recent technical foul, his 17th this season, Cole tweets. Jenkins said Brooks was walking away from a confrontation when the technical was assessed. Brooks was already suspended for one game when he reached 16 technicals this season and would face an additional one-game suspension for every two techs he accumulates the rest of the way.
Dejounte Murray isn’t sure what kind of reception to expect Sunday in his first game back in San Antonio since the Spurs traded him to the Hawks, per Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News. Some fans are upset about statements and social media posts from Murray regarding his time in the city. “At the end of the day, I love this city, I love the San Antonio Spurs organization, the Austin Spurs, I love everything about it,” Murray said Saturday. “However it goes (Sunday) is however it goes. But I am excited to see the people I love and care about.”
The Pelicans‘ decision to let Zion Williamson run the offense has resulted in a lot of inefficiency when he’s not available, states Christian Clark of NOLA. New Orleans has the fourth-worst record in the league since Williamson was lost with a hamstring injury in early January and is 26th in points per 100 possessions over that span.
The Rockets will likely be aggressive in trying to trade down in the draft if their first-round pick doesn’t land in the top three in the lottery, according to Kelly Iko of The Athletic.

Southeast Notes: Murray, Oladipo, O. Robinson, Isaac

March 10th, 2023 at 9:30pm CST by Rory Maher

Hawks guard Dejounte Murray received a $500K bonus earlier this week after he converted his 123rd three-pointer, per ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter links).

As Marks notes, the bonus was considered unlikely because Murray had never previously reached that milestone. Atlanta’s 2022/23 team salary will increase by $500K as a result, moving that number just $1.1MM below the luxury tax threshold.

The bonus will also impact Murray’s cap hit for next season, bumping it from $17.7MM up to $18.2MM, Marks adds. The Hawks were tracking the likelihood of the bonus being reached, plus they added Saddiq Bey, which is why they were motivated to make a salary-dump trade at the deadline, according to Marks.

Through 61 games (36.4 MPG) in his first season with Atlanta, Murray is averaging 21.0 PPG, 5.4 RPG, 6.0 APG and 1.5 SPG on .467/.362/.847 shooting. He will be an unrestricted free agent in 2024.

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Victor Oladipo has had plenty of highs and lows in 2022/23. He missed the first 24 games of the season with a knee injury, but he played in his 35th game on Friday night versus Cleveland and appears on track to play his most games since 2018/19, when he suffered a major quad injury. As Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald writes, Oladipo has struggled with inconsistency on offense, but has played solid defense thus far. “Everybody goes through stuff, everybody goes things,” the Heat guard said. “It’s about how you have resolve and how resilient you are, it really defines who you are as a person and defines who you are as a man. So I’m just going to continue to keep getting better and staying aggressive.”
The Heat signed a couple of frontcourt veterans last month in Kevin Love and Cody Zeller, which removed Orlando Robinson from the rotation. The rookie center, who is on a two-way deal with Miami, only has four active games remaining as part of his contract, so the temporary plan is to send Robinson back to the G League for playing time, Chiang writes in a subscriber-only story for The Miami Herald. The Heat have enough wiggle room beneath the tax line to convert Robinson to a standard deal if they want to, but the problem is their 15-man roster is full, so they don’t appear to be in any rush on that decision, Chiang notes.
Mike Bianchi of The Orlando Sentinel (subscriber link) believes it’s time for the Magic to move on from Jonathan Isaac, who underwent season-ending adductor surgery after appearing in just 11 games. Bianchi heaps praise on Isaac off the court and believes he has plenty of potential on it, but says his lengthy injury history makes it too risky to keep him around. Isaac missed all of ’20/21 and ’21/22 while recovering from a torn ACL, and missed a significant amount of time in his first three seasons as well. The 25-year-old’s contract for next season is partially guaranteed for $7.6MM, but it would be “silly” to bring him back and pay him his full $17.4MM salary, according to Bianchi.

Hawks Notes: Resslers, Front Office, Snyder, Young, Bogdanovic

March 3rd, 2023 at 6:15pm CST by Luke Adams

Hawks owner Tony Ressler believes his team has underachieved this season, which is why he decided to overhaul the front office and signed off on the new group’s plan to replace head coach Nate McMillan with Quin Snyder, he tells Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

According to Ressler, he’s staying out of basketball decisions and has given new general manager Landry Fields the autonomy to make those calls. The Hawks’ owner said he removed Travis Schlenk from his role as the team’s head of basketball operations because he wasn’t happy with the front office’s level of “collaboration and communication,” per Wojnarowski.

“I can tell you this: Landry and (assistant GM) Kyle (Korver) are running a much better, much more collaborative front office,” Ressler said. “That’s of huge importance to me because I think that’s how you get better. Having ownership, a front office, a coaching staff and the right roster — when all of those folks work well together, I think results improve. That was the objective and that’s why I made the change that I did.”

There has been some skepticism about the new-look Hawks’ front office due to the relatively inexperienced nature of the head executives, along with the reported empowerment of Tony’s son Nick Ressler. However, the elder Ressler expressed full confidence in the new group.

“What I’ve always done is rely on people who know more than I do to run a business better than I could,” Ressler said to ESPN. “Who makes the decisions (now), it’s undoubtedly Landry with Kyle — with (head coach) Quin (Snyder). (They) are going to work beautifully together from what I can tell. I do believe we will make better decisions going forward than we have done in the past.”

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In a separate interview with Lauren Williams of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Ressler insisted that his son Nick’s influence in the basketball operations department has been overstated. “Nick works in the organization, helps me in both the business and basketball operations, helps me understand the goings-on of the organization, if you will, helps me evaluate what we’re doing,” Tony said. “But he sits in the same role (I do). He’s in ownership, but is full time to the organization. So the simple answer, is ‘No, he’s not in charge of any (basketball) decision-making.'”
Although the Hawks have made some roster moves this year that seemed aimed at avoiding the luxury tax, Ressler insists those moves weren’t driven by him. “We’re not worried about the luxury tax,” he told Williams. “… Do I think it’s a good idea to be incredibly average (and) in the luxury tax? I’d rather not. I’d rather be contending in the luxury tax or being a great team in the luxury tax. But at the end of the day, I’ve never suggested a trade to get out of the luxury tax ever. Whoever said that will be giving you an untruth, directly, indirectly, intentionally, unintentionally. Never said it. Never will.”
Rival executives lauded the Hawks for the hiring of Snyder, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, who spoke to Williams for the latest HoopsHype podcast. There have been suggestions that Snyder may have taken the job in part to have a bigger say in roster changes — when Williams spoke to Snyder she got the impression that while Fields and Korver will “weigh his opinion pretty heavily,” but she doesn’t believe Snyder’s voice will be the “end all and be all.”
Williams also touched on the slow-developing chemistry of Trae Young and Dejounte Murray, saying “they’re still learning from each other” and suggesting that the two guards may not have a close relationship. Williams is surprised by that because Young was eager to team up with Murray in the offseason. Williams says Young “is a nice guy,” but has heard “sometimes he has some trouble endearing himself to his teammates off the court,” though she says people like playing with him.
Veteran wing Bogdan Bogdanovic is expected to decline his $18MM player option for 2023/24 and enter unrestricted free agency, says Scotto. Williams is a little skeptical Bogdanovic will exceed $18MM per year on his next contract due to his injury history, but Scotto believes he could at least equal, if not exceed, that total on annual basis, noting that the salary cap is expected to go up each year for the foreseeable future. It could be tricky for Atlanta to re-sign Bogdanovic, Scotto adds, citing luxury tax concerns.

Rory Maher contributed to this post.