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Hawks Officially Announce Quin Snyder’s Coaching Staff

June 14th, 2023 at 10:23am CST by Luke Adams

The Hawks have issued a press release confirming several new additions to Quin Snyder‘s coaching staff, most of which have been previously reported.

Those additions are as follows:

  • Igor Kokoskov, the former head coach of the Suns and most recently a Nets assistant.
  • Ekpe Udoh, a former NBA center who played for Snyder in Utah from 2017-19 and recently retired as a player.
  • Bryan Bailey, who worked as an assistant on Snyder’s staff in Utah.
  • Mike Brey, the longtime head coach at Notre Dame.
  • Brittni Donaldson, a former assistant with the Raptors and Pistons.
  • Antonio Lang, a Cavaliers assistant who worked under Snyder in Utah from 2014-19.
  • Sanjay Lumpkin, a former Jazz player development coach.

The Hawks are also bringing back Steven Klei and Jeff Watkinson, two more former Jazz assistants who joined Snyder’s staff in March.

Additionally, Reggis Onwukamuche – a former College Park Skyhawks player and Jazz video room staffer – is joining the team as a player development coach, while Bryan George – formerly an assistant coach for ASVEL in France – has also been formally added to the player development staff in a video coordinator role.

Snyder replaced Nate McMillan as the Hawks’ head coach midway through the 2022/23 season, so ’23/24 will be his first full year on the team’s bench. As such, it’s no surprise that he was given the opportunity to revamp his staff and replace several of McMillan’s old assistants this spring.

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Ekpe Udoh Retiring As Player, Joining Hawks’ Coaching Staff

June 13th, 2023 at 12:41pm CST by Luke Adams

Former NBA big man Ekpe Udoh is transitioning into the next phase of his career, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, who reports (via Twitter) that Udoh is joining the Hawks as a member of Quin Snyder‘s coaching staff.

Udoh hasn’t been on an NBA roster since 2019, but he continued to play internationally in recent years, suiting up for teams in China, Italy, and Japan. As Lauren L. Williams of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution tweets, the 36-year-old played for the Japanese club Kyoto Hannaryz earlier this year, but has opted to retire as a player and will pivot to coaching.

The sixth overall pick in the 2010 NBA draft, Udoh began his career in Golden State and made stops in Milwaukee, Los Angeles (with the Clippers), and Utah from 2010-19. The 6’10” center also played in Israel and Turkey during that period, winning a EuroLeague title in 2017 with Fenerbahce. He made the All-EuroLeague First Team that year after leading the league in rebounds and blocked shots.

In 384 career NBA regular season games, Udoh averaged a modest 3.5 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks in 14.8 minutes per night. He also made 16 appearances in the postseason, but never played a major role, averaging just 5.8 MPG in those contests. Of his 400 total NBA games, 122 came for the Jazz under Snyder, who was the team’s head coach at the time.

The Hawks are also adding Bryan George to their coaching staff as a video coordinator with a focus on player development, tweets Jeff Schultz of The Athletic. George had been an assistant coach for ASVEL in France.

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And-Ones: Suns’ Sale, Expansion, Udoh, Ignite, Warkentien

December 24th, 2022 at 10:47am CST by Luke Adams

There wasn’t a ton of trade chatter at the G League Winter Showcase in Las Vegas this past week, but the news of the Suns‘ sale to Mat Ishbia generated plenty of discussion, according to John Hollinger of The Athletic. Specifically, the franchise’s $4 billion valuation raised eyebrows, given how far above recent projections it was.

As Hollinger explains, that eye-popping sale price led to speculation on two fronts. For one, there were conversations about whether other franchises could find their way onto the market — for instance, Paul Allen‘s estate appears content to exercise patience before eventually opening the bidding on the Trail Blazers, but it’s possible the Suns’ valuation could help expedite that process. Hollinger adds that there have also been whispers over the years about whether Michael Jordan will sell the Hornets.

Perhaps more importantly, the Suns’ high sale price could be good news for the prospect of NBA expansion. As Hollinger observes, the existing 30 team owners are more likely to agree to bring in two new partners if their cut of the expansion fee high enough to offset their losses from splitting the NBA’s TV deal and other sources of revenue 32 ways instead of 30 ways. The Suns selling for $4 billion increases the odds of expansion fees for teams in cities like Seattle and Las Vegas reaching the neighborhood of $4-5 billion, says Hollinger.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

  • Former NBA lottery pick Ekpe Udoh is resuming his playing career in Japan, according to Alessandro Maggi of Sportando, who relays that the big man has signed with the Shimane Susanoo Magic. The No. 6 overall pick in the 2010 draft, Udoh appeared in 384 total NBA games, but hasn’t played in the league since the 2018/19 season.
  • Scoot Henderson wasn’t available for the G League Ignite during the league’s Winter Showcase event in Las Vegas this past week, but Jeremy Woo of SI.com got a chance to scout several other Ignite players, including London Johnson, Leonard Miller, Sidy Cissoko, and Mojave King. Woo shares several of his key takeaways on the Ignite’s non-Henderson prospects, identifying Miller and Cissoko as players who have a chance to be selected in the first round of the 2023 NBA draft (Johnson will be draft-eligible in 2024).
  • Veteran NBA executive Mark Warkentien, who won an Executive of the Year award in 2009 as the Nuggets‘ head of basketball operations, has passed away at age 69 (Twitter link via the Nuggets). Warkentien most recently worked in the league as a special assignment evaluator for the Thunder. We at Hoops Rumors send our condolences to his family and friends.
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And-Ones: Fournier, France, Udoh, Gasol

September 19th, 2021 at 7:43pm CST by JD Shaw

Knicks guard Evan Fournier has expressed confidence in the future of France’s national team, discussing his vision for the program in an interview with L’Equipe (hat tip to Sportando).

Fournier, 28, was part of the French team that nearly defeated Team USA in the Gold Medal Olympic game last month. While his team narrowly missed out on a gold medal, it did beat Team USA in an exhibition contest two weeks earlier. Fournier led all scorers with 28 points during that outing.

“We have to promote our sport culture, stop being afraid of being ambitious,” Fournier explained. “I want this to change and our team can do it. We are not afraid of anyone. My vision is to become as dominant as Spain has been in the last fifteen years. Tokyo is just our first final … I want to win Eurobasket 2022.  This is not the time to stop. We have the opportunity to build a dynasty.

“This team must grow every summer, relive the same emotions, reactivate what has made possible our success in Tokyo: putting aside the ego, fighting for each other, having this winning mentality. And starting over every year. It is an opportunity for our sport, but also something that can go beyond basketball, help sport in France. We can set an example for an entire generation.”

Here are some other odds and ends from around the basketball world:

  • Former NBA center Ekpe Udoh has suffered a complete tear of his left knee patellar tendon, Emiliano Carchia of Sportando tweets. The 34-year-old will undergo surgery for the injury and no timetable has been issued. As we previously relayed, it’s believed that Udoh slipped due to an on-court sticker during the Italian SuperCup quarterfinals on Saturday.
  • Veteran NBA big man Pau Gasol briefly discussed the ongoing free agency of his brother, Marc Gasol, acknowledging that Marc has plenty of enthusiasm for Spanish club Basquet Girona. Marc and the club have been linked since he was waived by the Grizzlies last week. “Marc has earned the freedom and flexibility to make his own decision and he will do so when he decides,” Pau said, according to Spanish newspaper Marca (hat tip Sports Illustrated). “I know he has a lot of enthusiasm for Basquet Girona, a club in which I am also involved as vice president. He is in a different situation, because he is five years younger than me. We will see what he decides to do this season and later, I am also waiting.“
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Jordan Bell May Sign With Italian Team

September 19th, 2021 at 9:19am CST by Arthur Hill

Virtus Bologna, the defending champion in the Italian league, is considering signing NBA center Jordan Bell, according to Ennio Terrasi Borghesan of Sportando. The news was first reported by the Italian newspaper Corriere di Bologna.

Bell, 26, finished last season with the Warriors after signing a two-way contract in mid-May. He appeared in just one game for Golden State and wasn’t used in either play-in game.

He also played for the Wizards last season, signing a pair of 10-day contracts in January and April. He got into five total games with Washington, averaging 2.8 points and 3.8 rebounds in 13.4 minutes per night.

Bell was the 38th pick in the 2017 draft and was acquired by the Warriors in a draft night trade. He played rotation minutes for the team during its championship season in 2017/18 and again in its trip to the finals the following year.

He signed with the Timberwolves as a free agent in 2019, but only played 27 games before being traded. He also had brief stops with the Rockets, Grizzlies, Cavaliers and Lakers.

Virtus Bologna has an opening after a potentially serious knee injury to another former NBA player, Ekpe Udoh, per a report from Eurohoops. Udoh was hurt when he slipped on an on-court sticker during the Italian SuperCup quarterfinals.

“The biggest concern is Udoh’s injury. It seems to be bad, he’s the center around whom our game revolves,” coach Sergio Scariolo said. “This story of the court stickers that players slip on is something to think about. It’s a very serious injury for the player and a serious one for the team. I hope it serves to make it clear that we need to have the utmost attention on these things. There are no stickers in the NBA.”

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Eight Current NBA Players On Nigeria’s 12-Man Olympic Roster

July 19th, 2021 at 3:55pm CST by Luke Adams

After making some noise in the exhibition schedule by upsetting Team USA, Nigeria will be looking to become the first African men’s basketball team to win an Olympic medal. And they’ll be doing so with a roster that features eight current NBA players, along with one former NBA player.

Here’s the 12-man squad that will represent Nigeria at the Tokyo games, per the Nigeria Basketball Federation (Twitter link):

Achiuwa, Nwora, Okafor, Okogie, and Okpala are all on guaranteed contracts for next season with their respective teams. Metu and Oni are on non-guaranteed deals, while Vincent will be eligible for restricted free agency after finishing the season on a two-way pact. Udoh, a former sixth overall pick who just finalized a two-year deal with Italian club Virtus Bologna, has appeared in a total of 400 NBA games (regular season and postseason)

While the Nigerian squad isn’t exactly loaded with star power, it’s worth highlighting since it’s rare for any country besides Team USA to send so many current NBA players to the Olympics.

Australia’s team will have seven players who finished the season on NBA rosters, while Spain’s roster features 10 players with at least some NBA experience. But the U.S. team is the only other one in Tokyo that will feature at least eight current NBAers.

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And-Ones: McCullough, Hayes, Auguste, Udoh, Lofton

July 18th, 2021 at 6:46pm CST by JD Shaw

Former Nets forward Chris McCullough, the 29th overall pick in the 2015 NBA draft, is eyeing a return to the NBA this year, Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News writes. McCullough is currently training for The Basketball Tournament with Boeheim’s Army.

“I’m still athletic and stuff like that. But I do way more than dunk now,” said McCullough, who played 40 games with Brooklyn from 2015-17 and 21 games with Washington from 2017-18. “I can block shots. I can handle the ball. I have range. I can create my own shot now. So it will be very different.”

McCullough’s TBT team is set to start playing on Saturday. The 26-year-old has received interest for the Las Vegas Summer League next month, sources said. He also told the Daily News that he has upcoming workouts scheduled with multiple NBA teams.

Here are some other odds and ends from around the basketball world:

  • EuroLeague players Nigel Hayes and Zach Auguste will work out for the Celtics this week, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando (Twitter link). Hayes, a 6’8″ power forward, holds nine games of NBA experience and last played in Lithuania. As for Auguste, a 6’10” big man, he’s spent most of his career overseas and most recently played in Greece.
  • Free agent center Ekpe Udoh has signed a two-year contract with Virtus Bologna in Italy, the team announced. Udoh, the No. 6 pick in 2010, has appeared in 384 NBA games with four teams. He most recently played in China.
  • Former Pistons two-way player Zach Lofton has signed in Kuwait with Kazma Sport Club, Nicola Lupo of Sportando tweets. Lofton is a 28-year-old guard who went undrafted in 2018.
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And-Ones: Bates, Trades, COVID-19, Udoh

March 5th, 2021 at 2:45pm CST by Ben Stinar

Emoni Bates is the number one player in the country, according to ESPN’s basketball rankings for the class of 2022. While most kids would join a blue blood program (he’s committed to Michigan State) in their one season before the NBA, times have changed. According to Brendan Quinn of The Athletic, many sources think that Bates will forgo his college eligibility to play in the G League, just as top 2020 recruit Jalen Green did. 

“Of all the sources interviewed for this story, those existing in and out of the Bates’ camp, no one seems to believe Emoni will play at Michigan State,” Quinn wrote. “Instead, Bates most likely will wait for a professional contract, probably the most lucrative the G League can muster, and turn professional before heading to the NBA.” 

However, according to Emoni’s father, Elgin Bates, no decision has been made just yet, as Adam Zagoria of Forbes writes.

“If the G League is something he wants to do, if he decides that’s what he wants to do, that’s perfectly fine,” the elder Bates said, via Zagoria. “He can do the G League. If Michigan State is what he wants to do, that’s perfectly fine. If he wants to entertain going overseas, that’s perfectly fine. If he just wants to sit out and train for a year, it’s whatever he wants to do. It’s his decision.”

Here are a few more tip-ins from around the basketball world: 

  • A handful of ESPN experts (Insider link) shared the trades they’d like to see happen ahead of the NBA’s March 25th trading deadline. The potential swaps ESPN’s insiders proposed included a three-team trade that would send Kyle Lowry home to Philadelphia, Aaron Gordon going to the Timberwolves, and the Clippers acquiring George Hill.
  • According to a study published in JAMA Cardiology, fewer than 1% of pro athletes infected by COVID-19 also developed inflammatory heart disease. “Only time will tell if, five years from now, we’ll have an epidemic of failed hearts,” said Dr. Robert Bonow, a cardiologist at Northwestern University and editor of JAMA Cardiology who was not affiliated with the study, per ESPN’s Kevin Seifert. “But I think that is unlikely.”
  • Ekpe Udoh, who spent seven seasons in the NBA for the Warriors, Bucks, Clippers and Jazz, has landed a deal to play in China for the Beijing Royal Fighers, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando.
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International Notes: Australia, China, Turkey, EuroLeague

March 19th, 2020 at 10:12am CST by Luke Adams

After canceling the remainder of their best-of-five Grand Final series earlier this week due to the coronavirus pandemic, Australia’s National Basketball League announced today that the Perth Wildcats have been crowned champions for 2019/20. Perth was leading the Sydney Kings 2-1 in the series when it was canceled.

In a statement, NBL owner and executive chairman Larry Kestelman and commissioner Jeremy Loeliger explained the decision and announced that former standout Providence guard Bryce Cotton has been named the Grand Final MVP.

The NBL’s press releases this week have made it clear that the league’s decision to cancel the rest of the Grand Final series was made in large part because the Kings expressed they weren’t comfortable with continuing to play those games. Bogut, who said Sydney’s decision was made after “almost three hours of back and forth (and plenty of tears),” registered his displeasure with the way the NBL handled things.

“I want to go on record to say I am beyond embarrassed and disappointed in regards to how this was handled by our league from the week leading up to the Grand Final series. More to come at a later date re: that,” Bogut wrote in a Twitter note. “This has nothing to do with the result announced today and I wish to congratulate the Perth Wildcats on being crowned Champions.”

Here’s more international news from basketball leagues around the world:

  • Jeremy Lin, Ekpe Udoh, and Antonio Blakeney are among the players who have now returned to China and will begin a two-week quarantine before returning to their respective CBA teams, per Emiliano Carchia of Sportando (Twitter links).
  • The Turkish government has made the decision to suspend all sports in the country, including basketball, Carchia writes in a story at Sportando. Players in Turkey expressed dismay last week that games were continuing amid the coronavirus outbreak, as we noted at the time.
  • The EuroLeague issued an update on the postponement of its season, addressing whether or not players are allowed to leave their respective cities, what will happen with this year’s EuroLeague Final Four, and much more. Carchia has the full memo at Sportando.
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World Cup Updates: Lithuania, Joseph, Nigeria, France

August 27th, 2019 at 10:27am CST by Luke Adams

The Lithuanian national team has announced its roster for the 2019 World Cup, according to Donatas Urbonas, who tweets that the 12-man squad will include Grizzlies center Jonas Valanciunas and Pacers big man Domantas Sabonis in the frontcourt. Former Knicks forward Mindaugas Kuzminskas is also on the roster.

Lithuania is viewed as a contender to make a deep run in this year’s tournament, but it won’t have an easy path to even make it out of the first round. The Lithuanian national team is part of a group that also includes Australia, Canada, and Senegal — only two of those clubs will advance to the round of 16.

Here’s more on the 2019 World Cup, which will tip off in just four days in China:

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