Atlanta Hawks Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Bryan Colangelo, Grant Hill, Others Eye Hawks

January 8th, 2015 at 2:39pm CST by Chuck Myron

2:39pm: Itzler is teaming with brokerage firm founder Steven Starker and has “extreme interest,” though he cautioned that it’s just preliminary, as he told Scott Soshnick and Zeke Faux of Bloomberg.com. Vivlamore reported Wednesday (below) that Itzler was seeking only a minority share.

2:22pm: Bryan Colangelo is part of the group with Hill and Bridgeman, Aldridge clarifies (on Twitter).

THURSDAY, 2:19pm: Hill and fellow former player Junior Bridgeman are teaming up to try to purchase the Hawks, with Jerry Colangelo, Bryan’s father, acting a “senior advisor” to them, TNT’s David Aldridge reports (Twitter link). It’s unclear if Bryan is a part of the Hill-Bridgeman group. The Hawks officially put the entire team as well as Phillips Arena up for sale today, the club announced via press release.

WEDNESDAY, 10:29am: Former Suns and Raptors GM Bryan Colangelo, Grizzlies minority owner Steve Kaplan and casino mogul Sheldon Adelson are some of those who’ve expressed interest in purchasing the Hawks, reports Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Grant Hill is also in the mix, Vivlamore hears, confirming earlier speculation. The owners of Atlanta’s WNBA team, Kelly Loeffler and Mary Brock, also hold a level of interest in bidding for the Hawks, along with their husbands, Jeffrey Sprecher and John Brock, as they recently told Maria Saporta of the Atlanta Business Chronicle for a subscription-only piece (hat tip to Vivlamore).

Colangelo appeared to be linked to a group of Chicago-based investors who came up short in a bid for the Bucks last year, and he was also reportedly a candidate for Cavs and Pistons front office jobs in the spring. Hawks GM Danny Ferry is on an indefinite leave of absence. Kaplan’s role within the Grizzlies hierarchy reportedly shrunk during the team’s reorganization this past offseason.

Jesse Itzler, whom Grantland’s Bill Simmons identified Monday as a “name to watch” in regard to the sale of the Hawks, is currently interested only in a minority share, sources tell Vivlamore. Simmons also reported that investors Chris Hansen and Thomas Tull are mounting separate bids to buy the team and move it to Seattle, but it appears unlikely they’ll be allowed to relocate the franchise. The NBA’s stance has been that it will only consider moving a team if the market has essentially given up on the club, and that’s not the case in Atlanta, as Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders points out via Twitter.

Former players Dominique Wilkins, Dikembe Mutombo and Chris Webber, former Grizzlies CEO Jason Levien and attorney Doug Davis are others who reportedly have interest in purchasing the Hawks, though some would probably have to find partners to have control over a majority stake. The three ownership groups who currently own the Hawks have all agreed to sell, and the team is set to officially go on the market in a matter of days, according to Vivlamore. The purchase price is likely to end up on the low end of a range between $750MM and $1 billion, as Grantland’s Zach Lowe reported last week.

Western Notes: Thunder, Lakers, Buss

January 7th, 2015 at 9:25pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Thunder sent $550K in cash to the Hawks in the Thabo Sefolosha sign-and-trade this past summer, tweets Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders. That helped convince Atlanta to make the deal a sign-and-trade instead of a straight signing, a move that allowed Oklahoma City to create the trade exception it used for Dion Waiters, as Pincus confirms and as Chuck Myron of Hoops Rumors explained earlier this week. The Thunder also created a $915,243 trade exception for Lance Thomas, Pincus notes (Twitter link).

Here’s more from the Western Conference:

Despite the Lakers‘ struggles this season, team president Jeanie Buss is satisfied with the job that coach Byron Scott is doing, Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News writes. “Our record doesn’t show what we’d like it to be. But I like what coach Byron Scott is doing and establishing,” Buss said. “I believe in what he’s trying to do and I see improvement all the time. I support our front office. I support our coach. I support our players.”
Buss also believes that the Lakers will be contending in three years time, something that her brother, vice president of basketball operations Jim Buss, predicted, Medina notes. “By three years, we will be where we should be in terms of the Western Conference,” Buss added. “That’s a challenge he [Jim Buss] presented to himself. Given all the resources that we have, our legacy and who our head coach is and who our front office is, I don’t see any problem progressing to where we need to be. We’ll be in the Western Conference finals in three years. As long as you have Kobe Bryant on your team, anything can happen in the playoffs.”
Now that the trade market has ramped up, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders continues his look at players who might be dealt prior to the February trade deadline. Some of the players whom Kennedy opines may be on the move include Reggie Jackson [Thunder], Jordan Hill [Lakers], Kosta Koufos [Grizzlies], and Jason Thompson [Kings].

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Southeast Notes: Hawks, Dawkins, Rice, Silas

January 7th, 2015 at 5:15pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Hawks are the only Eastern Conference team with fewer than 10 losses, and tonight they’ll host the Grizzlies, one of three Western Conference clubs with that distinction. Atlanta’s unexpected surge to the top of the East comes against the backdrop of the sale of the team, and with several new would-be owners surfacing, there’s yet more news on the state of the franchise amid the latest from around the Southeast Division:

NBA spokesman Mike Bass made it clear today that the Hawks will stay put even as the club is up for sale, as Bass told Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Twitter link). “The Atlanta Hawks are not moving to another market,” Bass said. A pair of investors reportedly want to buy the team and move it to Seattle.
The Heat have expressed interest in re-signing Andre Dawkins to a 10-day contract “down the road,” agent John Spencer told Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald, who writes in his daily notes column. The Heat waived Dawkins on Tuesday.
Glen Rice Jr. had trouble accepting criticism from coaches, but other Wizards players didn’t think he was a poor teammate, according to J. Michael of CSNWashington.com. Michael wrote this past weekend that Rice’s attitude was an issue that contributed to the team’s decision to cut ties.
Wizards camp invitee Xavier Silas has signed with Greece’s Nea Kifisia, the team announced (translation via Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia). Silas averaged 10.3 points in 19.3 minutes per game for Washington during the preseason before the team waived him prior to opening night.

Hansen, Tull Want To Move Hawks To Seattle

January 6th, 2015 at 3:58pm CST by Chuck Myron

Investor Chris Hansen and financier Thomas Tull are planning to make separate bids to buy the Hawks and move them to Seattle, according to Grantland’s Bill Simmons (Twitter link). Still, the existing owners of the Hawks, who’ve reportedly agreed to sell 100% of the team, want the club to stay in Atlanta, Simmons notes. Anyone who buys the team probably won’t have a chance to relocate it, given the NBA’s desire to stay in the Atlanta market, as Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution wrote amid last week’s reports. Other reports about the sale of the club have consistently indicated that it’s highly unlikely the team changes location.

Hansen teamed with Steve Ballmer to close a deal with the Maloof family to purchase the Kings in 2013, but the NBA rejected the bid and instead awarded the Kings to Vivek Ranadive and his investment team, who pledged to keep the franchise in Sacramento. Ballmer, who since then purchased the Clippers for a record $2 billion, was the primary financial backer of the Hansen-fronted bid, and the pair reportedly offered $650MM to buy the Bucks earlier this year, $100MM more than the team eventually sold for. Still, Hansen has forged ahead with plans to attract NBA and NHL teams to the Emerald City.

Tull is the founder and CEO of Legendary Entertainment, a film production company. He’s owns a minority share of the NFL’s Pittsburgh Steelers. Another “name to watch” in regard to the Hawks sale is Jesse Itzler, according to Simmons (on Twitter). Itzler is a former rap artist who made his fortune with a private plane rental business.

A league source told Grantland’s Zach Lowe last week that the Hawks would likely go for between $750MM and $1 billion, though it appears the price is more likely to end up on the low end of that scale. Others who reportedly have interest in buying the team include former players Dominique Wilkins, Dikembe Mutombo and Chris Webber, former Grizzlies CEO Jason Levien and attorney Doug Davis

Southeast Notes: Wade, Magic, Hawks, Porter

January 4th, 2015 at 4:43pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Heat are focused on landing a big-name free agent in 2016 when the team will have up to $50MM in cap space, but Dwyane Wade told Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald he isn’t fully on board with that strategy. “Nobody knows what’s going to happen in 2016; 2016, to me, is so far away and I hope people aren’t waiting on it thinking we’re going to land this quote, unquote Big Fish because it might not happen for you,” Wade said. “No one knows if [team president Pat] Riley is going to wait until 2016. It’s all speculation.” Wade, who will become a free agent in 2016, took an $11MM pay cut last summer to create cap room, signing a deal worth $31MM for this season and next.

There’s other news from the Southeast Division:

The Magic can solve a lot of their problems by making Nikola Vucevic the focus of their offense, opines Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel. Schmitz offers several suggestions for the struggling franchise, but the main one involves getting more shots for Vucevic, who agreed to a four-year, $53MM extension with the team last October.
Former Spurs assistant Mike Budenholzer has used San Antonio’s blueprint to build a winner with the Hawks, observes Jim Cavan of Bleacher Report. Cavan notes that Budenholzer has brought unselfishness and efficiency to a franchise long known for its isolation philosophy. He also credits the front office for getting the right players into the right roles. “I think that we have a system established here and we have a group of guys that understand the concept of teamwork and doing things as a team,” Al Horford said. “When you have a group of guys like that, it makes everything easier.”
After two games out of the rotation, Wizards forward Otto Porter returned to his regular role in Saturday’s loss to the Spurs, reports Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post. Porter briefly lost time to Martell Webster, who returned to action recently after missing the season’s first 30 games rehabbing from back surgery. “I think Martell had a couple opportunities and he didn’t do well,” said John Wall, “and Otto came in and stayed ready. You never know what night your name is going to be called and I think with this team our guys are ready.” Porter is still on his rookie contract and is under the Wizards’ control through 2016/17.

Eastern Notes: Sixers, Bosh, Mirotic, Hawks

January 3rd, 2015 at 10:42pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Sixers have played as well as expected this season and Tom Moore of Calkins Media wonders if Joel Embiid is the only star-caliber player on the roster. He admits that Michael Carter-Williams, Nerlens Noel and even Tony Wroten are serviceable NBA players, but none are likely to lead a team deep into the playoffs. At 4-27, Philadelphia currently owns the worst record in the league, which would guarantee the team a top four draft pick. You can follow our reverse standings to see which teams have the inside track to the top picks in the 2015 draft.

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

Chris Bosh didn’t foresee the Heat struggling this season but believes he can lead the team into the playoffs, writes Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel. “I wanted to see if I [was] able [to] have that increased role and still be successful. It’s out there in front of me and it’s out in front of this team. I just have to make sure I do my part in making sure we don’t lose track of what’s important,” Bosh said. The 11-year veteran has missed eight games this season due to injury and Miami is 11-14 with him in the lineup.
Bulls fans can thank the sign-and-trade that sent Carlos Boozer to the Bulls for having Nikola Mirotic on the team, as K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune explains. The Jazz agreed to send a second-round pick to Chicago for allowing them to make Boozer’s departure a sign-and-trade. Then, the Bulls parlayed that second-rounder into the draft rights of Mirotic during the 2011 draft.
The uncertainty surrounding the ownership of the Hawks hasn’t impacted the team on the court this season, writes Shaun Powell of NBA.com. The current owners of the Hawks have agreed to sell 100% of the team. Meanwhile, on the court, Atlanta sits atop the Eastern Conference with a record of 25-8.

Hawks Ownership Agrees To Sell Entire Team

January 2nd, 2015 at 12:10pm CST by Charlie Adams

All three of the Hawks ownership groups have agreed to sell their respective shares of the team, according to Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, meaning that 100% of the franchise will be available for purchase. Vivlamore hears that the NBA has approved of the sale and that the Hawks are being valued by interested parties at upwards of $600MM, while Grantland’s Zach Lowe was told by a league source that the organization might be worth anywhere from $750MM-$1 billion (Twitter link). Still, Lowe cautions that the club’s value is more likely on the lower end of that spectrum.

Controlling owner Bruce Levenson and his partners agreed to sell their 50.1% stake in the team in late September, shortly before a racially charged email from GM Danny Ferry was leaked and a controversial message Levenson had written in 2012 went public after an internal investigation. The Hawks’ other two ownership groups, led by Michael Gearon Jr. and Steven Price, were initially undecided on whether or not they would sell their stakes in the team, but reports from this summer had indicated that prospective purchasers wanted the entire franchise to exchange hands rather than just a portion of it.

There have been several parties reportedly interested in purchasing the Hawks, including former players Dominique Wilkins, Dikembe Mutombo and Chris Webber. Former Grizzlies CEO Jason Levien and attorney Doug Davis have also reportedly expressed interest. Whoever ends up with controlling interest in the team likely won’t have the opportunity to relocate the franchise out of Atlanta, Vivlamore notes, because the NBA would not want to lose a team in a top-10 market.

The sale of the Hawks franchise will put a finish to an unforgettable saga in Atlanta that changed the image of the organization and sent Ferry on an indefinite leave from his post at GM that he’s reportedly unlikely to ever return from. Multiple players indicated they would feel uncomfortable joining a team led by Levenson and Ferry after hearing the racially fueled comments the duo made, so perhaps the change in direction will help mend the view of the franchise going forward.

The Clippers were sold for a record $2 billion to former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer in August after a similar, albeit much more controversial, situation unfolded in Los Angeles when then-owner Donald Sterling was caught making inflammatory remarks about Magic Johnson and African Americans during a recorded conversation with his girlfriend. The Bucks were purchased by an ownership group spearheaded by Marc Lasry and Wes Edens last April for $550MM. The Hawks sound likely to land somewhere in between those two figures, with more prospective buyers sure to surface in the coming weeks.

Southeast Notes: Heat, Jefferson, Magic, Hawks

January 1st, 2015 at 12:53pm CST by Arthur Hill

Doomsday predictions for the Heat in the wake of losing LeBron James are starting to come true, and Jason Lieser of The Palm Beach Post reports that players are searching for answers. “I just don’t even know what the point of this season — I don’t know. I have no idea,” Chris Bosh said after Wednesday’s loss to the Pacers. After four straight trips to the NBA Finals, Miami is struggling through a season beset by injuries and adjustment to life without its former superstar.

There’s more from the Southeast Division:

Hornets coach Steve Clifford told Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer that the decision to shut down Al Jefferson came midway through Monday’s loss to the Bucks. “At halftime we spoke and agreed that we were going to sit Al down and say, ‘We appreciate you want to play, but…’” Clifford said. “It’s great that he wants to be out there and is team-first and wants to play. But he just can’t move.” Jefferson has been diagnosed with a strained adductor muscle in his left groin and is expected to be out of action for at least four weeks.
Former Magic coach Stan Van Gundy likes Orlando’s roster but warns there will be some tough choices ahead, writes Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel. “Like everybody, you get to the point in all of these projects where then you have to make decisions on money, and that’s actually in some ways tougher than assembling a lot of guys to begin with,” said Van Gundy, now coach and president of basketball operations for the Pistons. “Who are you going to pay and how much and how are you going to put the whole thing together?” Orlando’s decisions will start in July when Tobias Harris and Kyle O’Quinn are set to become restricted free agents.
The Magic have recalled Devyn Marble from the D-League, Robbins tweets.
The Hawks are among the best teams in the Eastern Conference, and Adam Fromal of Bleacher Report opines that they have a chance to be in that position for a long time. Atlanta has slightly more than $41MM committed in salary for next season, with Paul Millsap, DeMarre Carroll, Elton Brand and John Jenkins as expiring contracts. The Hawks also can exchange first-round draft picks with the Nets as one of the lingering benefits of the Joe Johnson trade, and they have an extra second-rounder coming from the Raptors.

Southeast Notes: Wizards, Napier, D-League

December 30th, 2014 at 5:29pm CST by Eddie Scarito

One major factor contributing to the Wizards‘ success this season is their excellent team chemistry, Jenny Dial Creech of the Houston Chronicle writes. Trevor Ariza was one of the team’s veteran leaders last season, but when he signed a free agent deal with the Rockets this past summer Washington acted quickly to replace that void by signing Paul Pierce, Creech notes. “You always have a contingency plan for that and that’s what we did,” coach Randy Wittman said. “Nothing ever really surprises you anymore in this league. It was a situation where we would have loved to have Trevor stay. We wanted to make sure we didn’t lose anything in that area with a guy like Trevor. We are trying to move on. We have Paul who has come in here and really moved into that spot.”

Here’s more out of the Southeast Division:

The Hawks have assigned John Jenkins to the Idaho Stampede, the team announced in a press release. Jenkins is headed to Idaho as part of the flexible assignment rule since Atlanta is without a one-to-one partnership with a D-League team. In one previous stint in the D-League Jenkins appeared in five games, averaging 19.4 points and 3.8 rebounds in 23.8 minutes.
Adreian Payne has been assigned to the Austin Spurs, the Hawks have announced. This will be Payne’s fourth trek to the D-League this season, and in 11 games Payne has logged 13.4 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 2.3 assists in 28.4 minutes per contest.
The Heat have assigned Shabazz Napier to the Sioux Falls Skyforce, their D-League affiliate, the team has announced. Napier has appeared in 25 games with the Heat this season, averaging 5.7 points, 2.3 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 21.0 minutes while shooting 42.5 percent from the field. This will be Napier’s second sojourn of the season to the D-League.

Eastern Notes: LeBron, Hawks, Knicks, Bass

December 29th, 2014 at 6:42pm CST by ChrisCrouse

LeBron James insists that coach David Blatt has the players’ attention, writes Joe Vardon of Northeast Ohio Media Group. “I think my relationship with the coach continues to get better and better every day,” James said. “It’s just two months of us being together. I don’t know him fully, he doesn’t know me fully, he doesn’t know any of the guys fully, and that’s to be expected. It’s our first year together. But he has our attention.” There were reports that members of the Cavs organization were concerned about how the players are responding to Blatt. The team hasn’t met expectations this season and has lost two of three games since center Anderson Varejao was sidelined with a torn Achilles.

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

The sale of the Hawks is still slow-going, a source tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports, who writes in his weekly power rankings column. Spears piggybacks on September speculation from TNT’s David Aldridge that Grant Hill will be among the bidders.
The Knicks aren’t ready to make “fire-sale” maneuvers just yet, one NBA GM told Spears for the same piece. New York is 5-28 on the season and ranks 27th in the league on offense, scoring only 94.6 points per game.
Celtics forward Brandon Bass understands the team’s decision to trade Rajon Rondo and is committed to the team as currently constructed, writes Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com. “My job is to work with what we have. That’s what I do. It’s sad to see Rondo leave, but at the end of the day, it’s a business,” said Bass. “Every year here somebody left. You’ve got to work with what you’ve got. I am a firm believer that, I don’t believe in looking for no people to come join a team — I ain’t into looking and searching for a team to go to win a championship. That’s not who I am. I’m into working with what we’ve got and making the best of it.”

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.