Days after parting ways with Nate McMillan, the Hawks appear to have found their next head coach, beginning “formal discussions” with Quin Snyder, according to league insider Shams Charania of The Athletic. Snyder last coached in Utah from 2014-22, leading the Jazz to a 372-264 record (.585-win percentage) with six playoff appearances over his eight seasons in Salt Lake City. This would be his second stint with Atlanta after previously serving as an assistant under Mike Budenholzer in 2013-14.
Along with Snyder, the Hawks had also been engaged with former Nets head coach Kenny Atkinson, Bucks assistant Charles Lee, Jordi Fernandez of the Kings, Gregg Popovich protégé Mitch Johnson and Miles Simon, who currently serves as head coach of the Lakers’ G League affiliate in El Segundo. Longtime Hawks staffer Joe Prunty will serve as interim coach until Snyder’s deal is finalized.
Currently eighth out of 15 Eastern Conference teams at 29-30, the Hawks have been a relative disappointment this season, losing eight of their last 13 despite the high-scoring backcourt tandem of Trae Young (26.7 points per game) and Dejounte Murray (20.7). Assuming the job is his, Snyder will be tasked with breathing new life into an anemic Hawks defense (116.7 opponent points per game) while also getting the most out of Young, who reportedly feuded with McMillan behind the scenes. The Hawks, who reached the Conference Finals as recently as 2021, face an uphill battle in a loaded East led by perennial juggernauts Boston, Milwaukee, Philadelphia and Miami with the Donovan Mitchell-led Cavs also posing a significant threat.
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