Hawks, Quinn Snyder move forward in deal talks

Sources told ESPN on Friday that the Atlanta Hawks and Quinn Snyder are in talks over a deal that would make him the franchise’s next head coach, and a solution could be reached within days.

Since firing coach Nate McMillan on Tuesday, sources said, the Hawks have made Snyder the focus of the search for coaches. Sources said Snyder has engaged with general manager Landry Fields, assistant GM Kyle Korver and owner Tony Ressler on a wide range of philosophical and team-building items in recent days, and those talks are expected to continue through the start of the weekend.

Although Snyder is out of the country with his family, the two sides discussed in detail how to work together to develop a partnership, the sources said.

Sources said the Falcons are willing to make a major contractual commitment with Snyder, who is considered the best coach available in the market this year.

If Snyder takes over this season, the organization would certainly welcome the turnaround in a sub-.500 season, but it’s more determined to give Snyder a chance to start evaluating team personnel and collaborating on the foundation for a reshaping culture and program, the sources said.

Snyder’s hiring could go a long way toward stabilizing an organization that has made changes involving Chief of Basketball Operations Travis Schlink (who moved to a senior advisory role) and McMillan in a matter of months into the regular season. Snyder is considered one of the best coaches, educators, and program builders in the NBA.

The Hawks promoted assistant Joe Bronte to interim head coach for a team that’s 29-30 and in eighth place in the Eastern Conference.

Schneider had a history as the Hawks’ assistant coach under Mike Bodenholzer before becoming the head coach of the Utah Jazz. Snyder led the Jazz to six consecutive trips to the Western Playoffs, including three semifinal berths.

Sources said Snyder, 56, resigned after the 2021-22 season and has been the focus of coaching searches by the Los Angeles Lakers and Brooklyn Nets since the season ended.

The Hawks have important offseason decisions to make about how they want to make up the roster, and the opportunity to move quickly in hiring could give them a better perspective for assessing the future of the franchise. Fields wants a coach who will improve player development, accountability, and advance toward rankings in the top 10 both offensively and defensively—all hallmarks of Snyder’s NBA teams.

The Falcons are ranked 16th in offensive efficiency and 21st in defensive efficiency this season. Fields stressed internally what a Hawks player would be like and wanted Snyder to start molding those characteristics.

At the moment, Bronte takes the position of interim head coach for the second time in his career. After replacing Jason Kidd in 2018, Bronte was 21-16 in the regular season for the Milwaukee Bucks as interim head coach. The Bucks lost a seven-game series to the Celtics in the opening round of the playoffs that year.

McMillan replaced Lloyd Pierce as interim coach in 2021 and engineered a reach to the Eastern Conference Finals. He was awarded a four-year contract and had a 99-80 record as head coach.