Mike Budenholzer Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Southeast Notes: Budenholzer, Scott, Clifford, Weltman

April 16th, 2018 at 8:05pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Hawks can expect a first-round pick if coach Mike Budenholzer bolts for another team, according to Michael Cunningham of the Atlanta Journal Constitution. Budenholzer, who has two years left on his contract, was granted permission to interview for the Suns job. The Celtics received an unprotected first-round pick in the 2015 draft when the Clippers hired Doc Rivers in 2013, Cunningham notes. The Suns own extra first-round picks in the 2019 and 2021 drafts from previous trades, Cunningham adds.

In other developments around the Southeast Division:

Forward Mike Scott has emerged as a key member of the Wizards’ second unit in their playoff series against the top-seeded Raptors, Chase Hughes of NBCSports.com notes. Scott was the only productive bench player Washington had in Game 1, as he scored 14 of its 21 points. A productive series would help Scott land a contract this summer. He signed a one-year, $1.47MM deal with the Wizards last summer.
Steve Clifford, who was fired as the Hornets coach last week, believes the team didn’t play with the same attitude it showed in previous years. Clifford made the comments during a press conference posted on the team’s website. “We’ve always had spirit. We didn’t have that this year,” he said. “Some games (we did), but not nearly the togetherness and spirit we’ve had in other years. They know that.”
The Magic are in no rush to hire a new coach after firing Frank Vogel following the regular season, John Denton of the team’s website reports. President of basketball operations Jeff Weltman indicated that during a postseason press conference. “It is something that you’d rather do sooner than later so that we can get a guy in place and have our new staff around so that they can get their arms around our players, develop relationships and develop our young guys,’’ Weltman said. “All of that factors in. It would be better sooner, but as I always say … `we’re going to get it right before we get it fast.’ Hopefully, we can do both on this.’’

Coaching Rumors: Magic, Bucks, Suns, Knicks

April 6th, 2018 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

When Chris Mannix of Yahoo Sports polled executives around the NBA recently on rising head coach candidates, Raptors assistant Nick Nurse and Raptors 905 head coach Jerry Stackhouse were among the top names on the list. According to Gery Woelfel of The Racine Journal Times, both Nurse and Stackhouse will likely be among the the candidates the Magic consider if the club elects to replace Frank Vogel this offseason.

In addition to the fact that current Magic president Jeff Weltman was formerly the GM in Toronto, Stackhouse also has a connection to Orlando general manager John Hammond, who was the GM in Milwaukee when Stackhouse played for the Bucks. Woelfel adds that some NBA officials believe the Magic are “leaning toward” replacing Vogel with Stackhouse, though Orlando’s list of preferred targets figures to become clearer if and when the club formally moves on from its current head coach.

Here are a few more coaching notes and rumors from Woelfel:

Multiple sources tell Woelfel that Clippers coach Doc Rivers and Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer would have “more than a passing interest” in the Bucks‘ position if they move on from their current teams this offseason. Some NBA officials believe that Budenholzer wouldn’t want to be part of an “extensive” rebuild in Atlanta, according to Woelfel.
While the Suns are expected to conduct a wide-ranging head coaching search, multiple NBA executives and coaches think David Fizdale, Jason Kidd, and Villanova’s Jay Wright will receive strong consideration, says Woelfel.
Besides Wright, Virginia’s Tony Bennett is among the college coaches expected to draw NBA interest. “Everybody knows he’s an exceptional defensive coach, but he does some really nice things offensively, too. He can flat-out coach.” one longtime NBA executive told Woelfel. “I think almost every team that is in the market for a new coach will take long, hard looks at Wright and Bennett. They’re both great coaches and they’re both great guys.”
A league source expects Mark Jackson and David Blatt to be among the finalists for the Knicks‘ job if the team dismisses Jeff Hornacek, according to Woelfel.

Hawks Fully Embrace Total Rebuild

October 30th, 2017 at 8:11pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Hawks majority owner Tony Ressler is convinced the franchise had no choice but to go into full rebuild mode, as he told NBA.com’s David Aldridge in an extensive piece on the team’s direction. New GM Travis Schlenk helped convince Ressler that the franchise was spinning its wheels and needed to stockpile draft picks while developing a young core, Aldridge continues.

“Truly, there are three options in the NBA, I would argue: being a contender, being a competitive team, and being young and fun,” Ressler told Adridge. “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.”

Instead, Ressler selected the “young and fun” option, despite knowing the losses would pile up this season. The team has five first-round picks during the next two drafts, including one from the Clippers that they acquired this offseason by getting involved in a three-way deal that included the Nuggets. The Hawks also traded away center Dwight Howard and opted not to pursue their top free agent, power forward Paul Millsap.

Aldridge also offered these nuggets in the story:

The team is building around point guard Dennis Schroder, second-year wings Taurean Prince and DeAndre’ Bembry, and rookie big man John Collins.
Schlenk feels pressure to produce on the draft picks: “It’s my job to, hopefully, get four of those right,” he said.
Ressler told coach Mike Budenholzer that he didn’t think anyone could be an effective head coach and run the organization at the same time. Budenholzer relinquished his duties as president of basketball operations. “I tried to convince him and I think he realized fully that being the GM is a full-time job,” Ressler said. “So why does anyone on earth think they can do two extraordinarily difficult jobs? And I believe Bud saw that very clearly.”
Budenholzer lobbied Schlenk to make an offer to Millsap even after the decision to rebuild was made.

Southeast Notes: Hornets, Wizards, Jordan

September 29th, 2017 at 4:35pm CST by Austin Kent

The Hornets struggled to keep leads when their starters – particularly Kemba Walker and Cody Zeller – were on the bench last season. The question ahead of 2017/18 then, Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer asks, is whether or not that will change this season.

Gone are all of Walker’s and Zeller’s backups, a veritable laundry list of players from Ramon Sessions, Brian Roberts and Briante Weber to Spencer Hawes, Roy Hibbert and Miles Plumlee. In their place are Michael Carter-Williams and Dwight Howard, both of whom were attained by the Hornets at relative bargains over the summer.

Of course the addition of Carter-Williams will provide size and defense to the Hornets’ second unit but the real draw is Howard, not because of what he’ll add off the bench but because of what his addition to the starting lineup entails.

As we’ve already written, head coach Steve Clifford has already committed to starting Howard when the season begins, that means Zeller himself will be able to work directly with the Hornets’ second unit to help do for them what he did for the starting five in 2016/17.

There’s more from the Southeast Division:

The Wizards will have a number of players to replace Markieff Morris with when the season tips off. The forward is currently expected to miss six to eight weeks with a sports hernia. “We have versatility and we have depth. We can go in many different directions. We can go small. We can throw Kelly Oubre]in there. We can throw Jason Smith in there. Mike Scott we can put in there. There’s a lot of players that we can throw into the mix,” head coach Scott Brooks told Chase Hughes of CSN Mid-Atlantic.
Hornets majority owner Michael Jordan will soon have a stake in another professional sports franchise. Jordan is part of Derek Jeter‘s group that has been approved to buy the Miami Marlins, Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer writes.
Only time will tell how Hawks head coach Mike Budenholzer and new general manager Travis Schlenk mesh over the next few years but the dynamic between the two could be worth watching as the organization’s priorities shift from winning ball games to developing for the future. Michael Cunningham of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes that Budenholzer will embrace the rebuild, whether that’s his preference or not.

Latest On Hawks’ Front Office Search

May 16th, 2017 at 3:00pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Hawks placed former team president Mike Budenholzer and former GM Wes Wilcox into new roles earlier this month and it appears the team’s search for new front office members is progressing out of its “infancy stage.”

Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Twitter link) hears that Sacramento’s Scott Perry is being considered for the open GM position. The Kings hired Perry as their executive VP of basketball operations less than four weeks ago.

Earlier today, we learned that the Knicks have granted the team permission to interview their Director of Player Personnel Mark Hughes for the Hawks’ open GM position. Like New York, Houston will allow Atlanta to interview a member of its front office. The Hawks have their eye on Rockets VP of Basketball Operations Gersson Rosas.

Atlanta is reportedly also considering Cavs GM David Griffin and Joe Dumars. The team also plans on discussing the position with TV analysts Chauncey Billups and Brent Barry.

Hawks Notes: Howard, Calderon, GM Search

May 9th, 2017 at 8:14pm CST by marksuleymanov

It has been a tough few weeks for Hawks center Dwight Howard and the morning of the Hawks‘ Game 6 loss Wizards on April 28 may have been his lowest point. Howard, 31, was pulled over at 2:06am for speeding, going 95 mph in a 65 mph zone, according to a police report obtained by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

After running a check, the police report adds that Howard was driving with a suspended registration and without insurance. The eight-time All-Star received a ticket for driving without insurance, a verbal warning for speeding, and his car was towed. Things did not improve in Game 6, where Howard totaled just nine points and seven rebounds in 22 minutes as Atlanta was eliminated from the postseason.

The Atlanta native recently expressed frustration with his lessened playing time during his exit interview, as Jeff Schultz of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution wrote. “It was very difficult,” Howard told reporters. “I want to play. I want to be out on the floor. I want to make a difference. I want to make an impact, and I can’t do that on the bench.” With Atlanta searching for a new general manager, it will be interesting to see where Howard fits in with the Atlanta for the remaining two years of his contract.

Here are some additional tidbits of Hawks news:

With Mike Budenholzer no longer the president of basketball operations, the Hawks are searching for a viable replacement but the process is currently in its “infancy stage,” relays Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (via Twitter). Wes Wilcox was recently removed from the GM role with Budenholzer stepping down as president but remaining as head coach. As Vivlamore adds, the Hawks are “trying to determine the attributes” of their desired candidate.
Veteran point guard Jose Calderon had a well-traveled 2016/17 campaign, starting as a reserve with the Lakers; being signed and released by the Warriors before suiting up; and playing an important role off the bench for the Hawks. The 35-year-old may not be a starter at this point in his career he still believes he can be effective, NBA.com’s KL Chouinard writes. Budenholzer continuously used the word “spirit” to describe Calderon’s impact and it’s that same spirit that believes he wants to continue in the NBA. “I want to just concentrate and play here two or three more years or whatever I can.”

Hawks Rumors: Millsap, Wilcox, Front Office

May 8th, 2017 at 12:43pm CST by Luke Adams

It was a “poorly-kept secret” in NBA circles that Wes Wilcox and Mike Budenholzer haven’t seen eye-to-eye on the Hawks’ direction in recent years, according to TNT’s David Aldridge. In his latest Morning Tip column on NBA.com, Aldridge takes a deep dive on the Hawks and the “philosophical” differences between Wilcox and Budenholzer, citing one source who referred to the front office situation as “a Game of Thrones kind of thing.”

According to Aldridge’s sources, Wilcox was in favor of trading Paul Millsap earlier this year and going all-in on an Atlanta rebuild, but Budenholzer – who retained final say on the team’s personnel moves at the time – nixed that idea.

[RELATED: David Griffin, Joe Dumars, Troy Weaver on Hawks’ radar?]

Although Hawks owner Tony Ressler – in a conversation with Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution – dismissed the notion that Budenholzer and Wilcox couldn’t work together, both men were re-assigned last week to roles that reduce their influence within the basketball operations department. Budenholzer is no longer the president of basketball ops, while Wilcox is no longer the Hawks’ GM.

Here’s more out of Atlanta:

No matter who the Hawks hire as their next GM, Millsap is expected to negotiate directly with Ressler this offseason, per Aldridge. And Atlanta will do everything it can to re-sign the All-Star big man. “There’s no disagreement on whether we’re going to try and keep him, and whether he’s great for the Atlanta Hawks,” Ressler said of Millsap.
While Millsap has publicly expressed a desire to remain with the Hawks, there are “rumblings about what he really thought about this season,” according to Aldridge, who writes that “there was unhappiness among some with a lack of accountability for other players who consistently made mistakes on the floor.”
Said one Hawks source to Aldridge: “We had guys out there doing (stuff) they had no business doing.”
Some members of the Hawks were also confused about why Thabo Sefolosha fell out of the club’s rotation in the playoffs, says Aldridge.
Ressler is serious about continuing to listen to Wes Wilcox‘s input as the former GM moves to a new advisory role, per Aldridge. The Hawks owner will also listen to input from execs like assistant GM Jeff Peterson and director of player personnel John Treloar, who were hired by Wilcox.
Wilcox is negotiating a new contract with the Hawks as he transitions to his new role, according to Aldridge, who notes that the deal will have offset protection for the franchise in case Wilcox finds a job with another team.
With free agency looming, Millsap still feels like he can improve as a player, as KL Chouinard of Hawks.com details.

Hawks To Retain Wilcox; Budenholzer To Relinquish President Title

May 5th, 2017 at 8:32am CST by Luke Adams

MAY 5, 8:32am: Speaking to Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Hawks owner Tony Ressler has confirmed the changes reported below. According to Ressler, Wilcox will serve as a special advisor to team ownership going forward, and the search has begun for a new general manager to head the basketball operations department.

MAY 4, 4:21pm: Although a report on Wednesday indicated that the Hawks were set to part ways with Wes Wilcox, the general manager will remain with the franchise in a high-ranking front office role after all, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. However, Atlanta’s front office will still be undergoing some changes.

According to Wojnarowski, Mike Budenholzer will relinquish his title as the Hawks’ president of basketball operations. Budenholzer will remain the club’s head coach, and will still have a say in personnel decisions, but he will no longer oversee the basketball operations department. Instead, Atlanta will seek out a new president of basketball operations, per Wojnarowski.

Since June 30, 2015, Budenholzer had been the team’s president of basketball operations, in addition to the head coach. In that faculty, Budenholzer had the final say in all basketball matters. Budenholzer has been the Hawks’ head coach since the end of 2013 playoffs. Prior to taking the head coaching job in Atlanta, Coach Bud was an assistant coach under Gregg Popovich with the Spurs.

As we discussed on Wednesday, there are now only four men in the NBA who possess both head coach and president of basketball operations titles: Doc Rivers with the Clippers, Stan Van Gundy in Detroit, Tom Thibodeau with the Timberwolves, and Popovich in San Antonio.

The Hawks just completed a 43-39 season, in which they finished as the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference and were eliminated in the first round by the Wizards. Atlanta has made the playoffs in ten consecutive seasons.

On Tuesday, the Magic began their interview process for president of basketball operations, with names such as Kevin McHale and Cavaliers GM David Griffin topping their wish list. Orlando is the only team besides Atlanta currently seeking a president of basketball operations. In the coming days, it will likely become apparent whether the Hawks will pursue the Magic’s candidates for their own vacant post.

Minority owner Grant Hill will play a key role in the search process, but has currently shown no interest in moving to operations full-time, Woj reports.

Joshua Fischman contributed to this story. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Latest On Potential Hawks’ Front Office Shakeup

May 3rd, 2017 at 3:44pm CST by Luke Adams

3:44pm: Mike Budenholzer has been discussing with Hawks ownership the possibility of eliminating his duties as president of basketball operations and focusing on coaching the team, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (Twitter link). Wojnarowski adds (via Twitter) that the Hawks continue to discuss Wilcox’s role, and resolution could come later today.

With Wilcox apparently on the outs and Budenholzer potentially taking on a reduced role, there would be at least one major opening in Atlanta’s front office. However, as the team’s statement below notes, nothing is official yet.

3:31pm: “There are no changes to report at this time,” the Hawks said in a statement issued to Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Twitter link). “Any reports indicating otherwise are inaccurate.”

The Hawks’ statement stops short of declaring that Wilcox isn’t going anywhere, simply suggesting there are no changes to announce “at this time.” That likely means that the move just hasn’t yet been made official, but we’ll continue to follow the story to see if anything changes.

2:59pm: With their season over, the Hawks are parting ways with general manager Wes Wilcox, according to ESPN’s Jeff Goodman and Marc Spears. While head coach Mike Budenholzer is also the president of basketball operations in Atlanta, Wilcox had played a key role in the department and in making personnel decisions.

Wilcox, who was originally hired by the Hawks as an assistant general manager back in 2012, took over as the team’s GM in 2015. The club was coming off a 60-win season at that time, but has since seen its win total slip to 48 in 2015/16 and then to 43 in 2016/17. The Hawks were eliminated from the postseason in the first round this season, a year after losing Al Horford in free agency, and Atlanta will now face the possibility of watching Paul Millsap walk as well, though owner Tony Ressler has said the organization will do all it can to retain the veteran big man.

Although the team lost Horford last summer, it was still an active offseason for the Hawks, who traded Jeff Teague and then signed Kent Bazemore and Dwight Howard to pricey long-term deals. Bazemore saw his numbers slip in the first year of his new contract, while Taurean Prince – who was drafted with the pick acquired in the Teague trade – didn’t make much of an impact in his rookie season. As for Howard, he reportedly expressed some displeasure during his exit interview about his role in Atlanta.

Wilcox originally received his promotion when racially-charged remarks made by Danny Ferry about Luol Deng led to Ferry’s resignation. Wilcox found himself in a similar – albeit less publicized – situation earlier this year, when a Deadspin report indicated that the Hawks GM had made a joke in poor taste at a season-ticket holder event. Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated reported at the time that Wilcox received discipline from the organization following that incident, though there’s no indication it played a major part – or any part – in his dismissal.

While Wilcox’s ouster wasn’t necessarily expected, a recent report did suggests that the Hawks may make front office changes to get new voices involved in basketball decisions.

Front Office Shakeups Ahead?

March 28th, 2017 at 7:11pm CST by Arthur Hill

Disappointing seasons could lead to front office changes for at least five teams this summer, writes Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders.

The most obvious team headed for a shakeup is Sacramento, which reportedly wants to position someone above GM Vlade Divac and may have interest in former Sixers GM Sam Hinkie, despite an official statement denying it. There are also ongoing rumors of a rift between Vivek Ranadive and the minority ownership, which has grown frustrated with the way the team has been managed.

Kyler notes that Ken Catanella was hired as an assistant GM last summer, but wasn’t given the power that many expected him to have.

Change may also be coming to these organizations:

Orlando — The Magic seem ready to replace GM Rob Hennigan, with Pistons executive and former Orlando player Pat Garrity as the leading candidate to be offered the job. The Magic had hoped to be playoff contenders after signing Bismack Biyombo and trading for Serge Ibaka, but the new combination never worked out. Orlando is 14th in the East at 27-47, and Ibaka was shipped to Toronto last month. Kyler cites league sources who say several of the Magic’s lower level executives are expecting changes and have started contacting other organizations.
New Orleans — A recent report said coach Alvin Gentry and GM Dell Demps could both be fired without significant progress by the end of the season. Demps may have bought himself more timee with the DeMarcus Cousins trade, but the Pelicans have reached the playoffs just twice during his seven years at the helm. Louisiana native Joe Dumars is close to ownership and is reportedly being considered as a replacement.
Phoenix — The Suns will miss the playoffs for the seventh consecutive year, and many believe that owner Robert Sarver wants to turn things around quickly. Ryan McDonough has amassed an impressive group of young talent in his four years as GM, but that may not be enough to convince Sarver to keep him.
Atlanta — It’s unlikely that coach/executive Mike Budenholzer or GM Wes Wilcox gets replaced, but several staff additions are expected. The Hawks have been shaken by the loss of free agent Al Horford last season and the possible exit of Paul Millsap this summer, along with a late-season losing streak that may knock them out of the playoffs. More voices may be brought on to help Budenholzer and Wilcox with the decision-making process.