According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Atlanta Hawks agreed to a five-year contract with Quin Snyder on Sunday to make him the franchise’s new head coach.
ESPN story on Quin Snyder agreeing to a five-year deal to coach the Atlanta Hawks https://t.co/K8UFM74ncr
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 27, 2023
Wojnarowski reports that Snyder’s former franchise player in Utah and current Cavaliers’ guard Donovan Mitchell highly touted his former head coach to Trae Young in a conversation following Snyder’s hiring. Mitchell attributed much of his development to Snyder, giving the Hawks and Young hope for the heights they could reach under his leadership.
Atlanta fired Nate McMillan amid the NBA’s All-Star break after a 29-30 record. McMillan earned the Hawks gig after reaching the 2021 Eastern Conference Finals under the interim tag, but a change was necessary after an underwhelming 2021-22 season and underachieving start to 2022-23.
Snyder led the Utah Jazz for eight seasons until his eventual resignation after the 2021-22 season in search of a new opportunity and the ensuing Jazz rebuild. He accumulated six winning seasons in Utah but could not get past the second round in the postseason despite three trips. He could make his bench debut representing Atlanta as soon as Tuesday at home against Washington.
Snyder’s main task will be to see the continued growth of Hawks All-Star guard Young and his chemistry with Dejounte Murray in the backcourt.
Over at FanDuel Sportsbook, the Hawks are -188 to make the Eastern Conference playoffs.
