Yesterday was an exciting day for Hawks fans. Trae Young knocked down a game-winner at State Farm Arena against the Nets, pushing Atlanta to a 2-0 record since the All-Star break. The Hawks also made their head coaching hire official, bringing in the former Utah Jazz head man Quin Snyder, who also served as an assistant head coach in Atlanta under Mike Budenholzer.
ESPN Sources: Quin Snyder has reached agreement on a five-year deal — including the rest of this season — to become coach of the Atlanta Hawks. Snyder is expected to be on sidelines as soon as Tuesday vs. Washington. pic.twitter.com/ZYLx7y4v9V
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 26, 2023
A five-year contract is one hell of a commitment, but that’s likely what it took for a high-quality candidate like Snyder to take the job in Atlanta. He was arguably the hottest commodity on the market, and the Hawks haven’t exactly been the most stable franchise over the last year or so.
From 2014-2022, Snyder was the head coach in Utah, where his teams seemed to consistently exceed expectations in a tough Western Conference. Just two seasons ago, he led the Jazz to the #1 seed with a record of 52-20, but they would come up short in the Conference Semifinals to the Clippers.
I’m not sure if simply changing coaches will be enough for the Hawks to turn things around this season, but Nate McMillan getting the axe was a foregone conclusion. It was only a matter of time before the Hawks decided to rip the band aid off. Snyder is a tremendous upgrade, and he has just as much talent, if not more, to work with in Atlanta than he did in Utah. At the very least, this is setting up to be a very intriguing second half for the Hawks, who currently sit one game over .500, good for 8th in the Eastern Conference.
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Photo: Jevone Moore/Icon Sportswire
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