The Hawks have fired coach Nate McMillan, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
McMillan was in his third season as Atlanta’s head coach and his fourth with the franchise. He took over as at the Hawks head coach in the middle of the 2020-21 season.
Assistant coach Joe Prunty will serve as interim head coach, according to Wojnarowski. Atlanta has made changes to its front office in recent months. Now, the Hawks will be in search of a new coach heading into the second half of the season.
Atlanta plans to undertake an extensive search immediately. The Hawks’ ideal candidate is someone who is exceptional with player development, accountability and elevating Atlanta’s offense and defense to among the top 10 teams in the league, per Wojnarowksi.
One candidate who is considered a top choice for the job is former Jazz coach Quin Snyder, according to Wojnarowski. Other candidates include Bucks assistant Charles Lee and Warriors assistant Kenny Atkinson, who previously served as head coach of the Nets.
Like Snyder, Lee will be a serious candidate for the job, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania. Lee served as an assistant for the Hawks under Mike Budenholzer from 2014 to ’18.
Kings assistant Jordi Fernandez, Spurs assistant Mitch Johnson and G-League South Bay’s Miles Simon also are linked to the Hawks’ coaching vacancy, per Charania.
McMillan previously served as head coach of the SuperSonics, Trail Blazers and the Pacers.
The Hawks (29-30) currently sit in eighth place in the Eastern Conference.
