Sund: Players Need ‘Another Voice’ After Six Years of Woodson’s
The Hawks decided not to offer coach Mike Woodson a new contract.
Woodson coached the Hawks for six seasons. The team improved its record in each of the last five years, including a 53-29 record this season that was fifth-best in franchise history, but GM Rick Sund decided the team needs a new leader.
“It was a hard decision,” Sund said. “When I analyzed and looked at it, I went round and round. Finally I think it got to the situation where the compelling thought is, ‘Maybe change is good for everybody.’ That happens quite a bit in the NBA. Maybe the players need to hear another voice, and maybe Mike needs to talk to another group.”
Sund declined to comment on the details of his evaluation of Woodson. Sund also didn’t want to discuss any potential candidates to replace Woodson or offer a broad outline of what qualities he wants in a successor.
Early media speculation has centered on Dallas assistant Dwane Casey, whom the Hawks interviewed before hiring Woodson. Sund was the Seattle GM when Casey was an assistant coach there for five seasons.
Woodson, who is free to seek other jobs, did not return a message. He has defended his tenure with the Hawks while highlighting accomplishments that include three consecutive playoffs appearances, and said he received unfairly harsh criticism for the team’s loss to Orlando in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
But Hawks management had doubts that Woodson’s approach would lead to further improvement, according to two people with knowledge of the decision. Among their concerns was that Woodson would have an increasingly difficult time getting through to his players if he returned.
Some players felt Woodson didn’t rebuke certain players as strongly as he did others for their mistakes, according to four people familiar with the locker-room dynamics. The differing levels of accountability led to resentment for some players , the people said.
Players credited Woodson with helping to maintain a loose atmosphere and reducing the length, frequency, and intensity of practices in an effort to keep them fresh for the playoffs. But one player said he hopes a new coach who doesn’t “play favorites” can improve the team’s chemistry.
Beyond those issues, the Hawks weren’t satisfied with Woodson’s 8-14 postseason record over the past two seasons. Last season the Hawks beat Miami in the first round before losing 4-0 to Cleveland in the semifinals. This season the Hawks beat Milwaukee in the opening round before losing in four games to the Magic by an NBA-record total margin of 101 points.
Hawks forward Josh Smith said the team’s decision to part ways with Woodson despite his success is a sign of the higher expectations for the franchise.
“It feels good to know we are not just satisfied with just being the eighth seed or improving every season,” he said. “We’ve got expectations of going to the playoffs every year and being a difference-maker in the playoffs. The organization has everything going in the right direction.”
Woodson, 52, had a 206-286 record with the Hawks. He took over for Terry Stotts in 2004-05 after previously serving as an assistant coach in Detroit, Philadelphia, Cleveland and Milwaukee.
Former Hawks GM Billy Knight tried to fire Woodson more than once during his third season but ownership rebuffed him. Knight resigned after the 2008 season and was replaced by Sund, who signed Woodson to a two-year contract after he guided the Hawks to their first postseason appearance in eight years.
Smith is the only player on the roster to play all six seasons under Woodson. The two had a contentious relationship at times but Smith said they had come to an understanding.
“It was rough starting out, but everything was smooth sailing a couple of years ago once we finally figured out what we wanted out of each other,” Smith said. “You just hate to see somebody you came in the game with leave like this.”
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590 comments Add your comment
tree rollins
May 14th, 2010
1:51 pm
Agree with the Avery Johnson or Byron Scott ideas – even Mike Brown would be a step above if he’s available now. I’d even bring Fratello back.
D Hawks
May 14th, 2010
1:52 pm
@ghost of Rankin – They also drafted the likes of Mike Pitts, James Britt, Andrew Provence, and Rick Bryan after hiring Henning. Joe Gibbs wouldn’t have taken that crew to the next plateau.
The Hawks must now make the right personnel decisions to go with this firing.
Blowhard Brandon Adams
May 14th, 2010
1:53 pm
No, I SHOULD be the next Hawks coach with Steak Shapiro as my assistant.
Montrell: In the words of the late, great Lewis Grizzard: “Delta is ready when you are” so if you don’t like Atlanta, then GTFO!
tree rollins
May 14th, 2010
1:53 pm
Dominique couldn’t coach a girls’ 12 year old church league team!
Mike Brown
May 14th, 2010
1:54 pm
I Just losy my job today, I hear you guys have an opening
o.O-Mac-Town -Macon, Georgia- Westsider-O.o
May 14th, 2010
1:55 pm
I dont see why some people are acting like it will be so hard to replace Woodson. H-e-l-l, anyone that has any type of offense with more than 1 play, ball movement, has more than 1 defensive strategy, and is capable of changing out of that strategy in-game if it isnt working…..will be better than Woodson.
BIBBY MUST GO
May 14th, 2010
1:56 pm
NOW!!!!!
JC
May 14th, 2010
1:57 pm
People who can coach as well as Woody did in the Orlando series:
1. Me
2. My grandmother
3. My other grandmother, who is infirm
4. A large rock
5. A smaller rock
6. Jeff Shultz
7. Every person posting comments on this story
8. Nobody at all
Chrusher
May 14th, 2010
1:57 pm
So, the Hawks now think themselves capable of “going to the next level”?! Woodson brought the team from laughing stock to at least a level of competitiveness. But, alas, Sund and the Hawks think themselves to be the Celtics or Magic, or Lakers. You again shall return to the proud tradition of winning 13 games a year.
Jim
May 14th, 2010
1:57 pm
Well you have to start somewhere and unfortunately you cannot fire 12 players, so the coach will always be the fall guy. He was a good coach here, but like the guy in Cleveland he will never take you to that next level. Mike Brown is gone next, no way will the Cavs keep him after this exit from the playoffs again.
Atlanta definitely need more size, unfortunately, there are no centers worth spedning money on this year. Hopefully Atlanta will focus on a PF this summer, PLEASE no more guards or SF.
BYC
May 14th, 2010
1:57 pm
Jay,
Tell me what exactly does Woody do well. We all know he can’t do crap in-game (timeouts, substitutions, using bench, making adjustments, drawing up plays). I personally don’t know what goes on in Hawks practices but from some peoples accounts on this blog it ain’t nothing to write home about. I am tired of this argument that Woodson is a good coach because our team improved. Our roster got much much better during his tenure and our young players went from rookies to veterans. I don’t think Woodson’s coaching has had much to do with the Hawks improvement. I am still waiting for someone to prove me wrong and to list at least one SPECIFIC thing that Woodson does well as a coach. ANYONE?
tree rollins
May 14th, 2010
1:57 pm
College Coaches, Isiah Thomas, and longtime NBA assistants NEED NOT APPLY!
mykhalc
May 14th, 2010
1:58 pm
failure to design and implement an offense and team identity in 6 yrs (ok i ‘ll give him a pass for the first 3 yrs) was the reason to not renew Woodson’s contract. any real NBA fan, especially HAWKS fan, could see this team NEVER could really run a f’n play. we need a leader as a HC…and a leader on the court. Horford PLEASE spread some BB IQ around to the rest of these cats this summer!!!
northcyde
May 14th, 2010
1:58 pm
Damn . . . si.com is already reporting that Mike Brown has been fired.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/basketball/nba/05/14/brown/index.html?eref=BrkNews
That was fast. As soon as they heard the Woody news, I guess the Cavs said ( F-this ), we’re going to get rid of Brown.
DHD
May 14th, 2010
1:59 pm
The way Woody did not utilize Teague in the regular season and Teague, Joe Smith and Collins in the playoffs kept the Hawks from re-newing his contract.
northcyde
May 14th, 2010
2:00 pm
We’re still not going anywhere without a competent PG . . no matter what coach you bring in here.
Half the fan base wants to get rid of JJ, our top assist guy. I guess Smoove will be our point forward, averaging 7 dimes a game, if Teague isn’t ready to lead.
GT Fan
May 14th, 2010
2:00 pm
Now that Woody is gone, I hope Hawks get a good replacement. It was time for Woody to leave. Best of Luck.
Still wish GT’s AD had the balls to FIRE PAUL HEWITT.
tree rollins
May 14th, 2010
2:02 pm
Anybody thinking about Jeff Van Gundy yet??
Clyde
May 14th, 2010
2:03 pm
Woody and Mike Brown had their chance to shine and now they are looking for a new job. If you can’t get the job done then lets find someone who can. Both coaches relied too much on one player instead of focusing on team basketball.
BCC0224
May 14th, 2010
2:04 pm
Thanks Coach Woodson. The guy did make massive improvements since he arrived as head coach. Stotts and Kruger didn’t even smell the playoffs, and Woody made this team a contender. He was a man of his word as well – he shaved his head like he promised if the Hawks made the playoffs. And after losing a NFL bet (so the rumor goes), he shaved his eyebrows. I wish him the very best and hope Atlanta goes forward and not backward.
Out of all of the Available HC's
May 14th, 2010
2:04 pm
Sam Mitchell’s squads have had the best offensive ratings. Always in th tog 5 offensively. His def. has been near the middle of the pack but he has’t had players/athletes like the Hawks have.
JVG….horrible offense. Always near the bottom as ar as poessons and pace are concerned. But that could have been b/c of the centres he’s had (Ewing and Yao) but he had T-Mac and couldn’t get out of the 1st round…
Byron Scott…it wad all Kidd and CP3, his players complained about his baisic offense that was too predictable (Really it was, woody had no problem stopping it, even with Chris paul lol)
Avery Johnson….not sure what his offensive philosphy is rally. Was it all just Dirk? Even though he was an assistant under nelly, we was coached by Greg Popovitch who’s not that great of an offensive coach so IDK
Lawrence frank……No
Paul Silas….No
Marc Jackson……is he really ready?
Decisions, Decisions
I blog with more Heart
May 14th, 2010
2:04 pm
JC
May 14th, 2010
1:57 pm
People who can coach as well as Woody did in the Orlando series:
1. Me
2. My grandmother
3. My other grandmother, who is infirm
4. A large rock
5. A smaller rock
6. Jeff Shultz
7. Every person posting comments on this story
8. Nobody at all
lol, if that ain’t priceless!!!!!!!!!!
DK
May 14th, 2010
2:05 pm
It doesn’t appear that Mike had a lot of love here.
Time will tell but teams that let go of playoff producing coaches because they failed to take the team to “that next level” in the playoffs usually fall on their faces. Woodson took a team that barely capable of winning 10 games in a season and turned them to (back) into a perennial playoff team. I wish the Hawks well, but this kind of thing is a crap shoot. We had a coach that could take us to the playoffs each year. Now we’ll show him the door and roll the dice and see if we can find better one? Better chance that we’ll end up with a coach that can’t even match Woodson’s accomplishments.
northcyde
May 14th, 2010
2:08 pm
BYC
May 14th, 2010
1:57 pm
Jay,
Tell me what exactly does Woody do well. We all know he can’t do crap in-game (timeouts, substitutions, using bench, making adjustments, drawing up plays). I personally don’t know what goes on in Hawks practices but from some peoples accounts on this blog it ain’t nothing to write home about. I am tired of this argument that Woodson is a good coach because our team improved. Our roster got much much better during his tenure and our young players went from rookies to veterans. I don’t think Woodson’s coaching has had much to do with the Hawks improvement. I am still waiting for someone to prove me wrong and to list at least one SPECIFIC thing that Woodson does well as a coach. ANYONE?
****************************
- Woody taught and preached the correct things to win basketball games . . . REBOUND AND DEFEND . . . and most of the time, played the people who bought into that philosophy
- Woody moving Josh Smith to PF, and encouraging him to take people off the dribble, was the single best move he did for Smoove, and the Atlanta Hawks.
- Woody put “superstar responsibilities” on Joe Johnson, forcing him to elevate his game from 4th option status, to lead dog status ( despite his troubles in the playoffs ). This not only helped him as a player, but helped stabilize a young team.
- Woody acted as a calming influence and never let them panic.
- Woody didn’t waste time playing people who couldn’t produce ( outside of Mike Bibby ). And even with Bibby, he cut his minutes drastically as the season went on.
Clyde
May 14th, 2010
2:08 pm
Bring Terry Stotts back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Simpdawg
May 14th, 2010
2:09 pm
Rick Sund let the interview process for hiring a new head coach begin. Here is a list of viable candidates for a new head coach. Avery Johnson, Jeff Van Gundy, Sam Mitchell, Mo Cheeks, Bill Laimbeer, Byron Scott and Mark Jackson. I like Bill Laimbeer, Avery Johnson or Byron Scott. Let me know who you guys like as the Hawks next head coach, because I think it’s very important for the Hawks to have a coach in place, before they start their player movement.
Justafan
May 14th, 2010
2:09 pm
Montrell..people like you are the ones that stir-up crap that hurts blacks more than helps us. I’ll buy your ticket out of here, hit the road. Oh, Coach Hewitt needs to go because of his coaching non-skills and his bad PR, not his color.
i_am_soulstar
May 14th, 2010
2:10 pm
Woody’ll be great coach for another bottom rung or middle of the road team. I’m sure he’s emotional about it now, but a new opportunity’ll give him a chance to experiment with new pieces.
Now, I’m betting Sund already has candidates for the coaching vacancy. Anyone know who they are?
Doves
May 14th, 2010
2:11 pm
No problem with letting Woodson go, everyday you are with the wrong coach is one less day you have with the right coach.
However, the inability to win the big playoff games has not resulted in the same for another coach we consider a legend in this town. One ring in 14 trips is a little more disappointing than 0 for 3.
What????
May 14th, 2010
2:11 pm
DK, Did u jus call woodson a “playoff producing coach???” Ha!
richbrave
May 14th, 2010
2:11 pm
“The WOOD is gone, the WOOD is gone away; the Wood is gone baby, the WOOD is gone away, You know you done me wrong baby, and you’ll be sorry someday” by B.B. KING.
What????
May 14th, 2010
2:12 pm
Also, Byron Scott got fored for not playing young players so he’s automatically disqualified.
tree rollins
May 14th, 2010
2:13 pm
Guys questioning letting Woodson go ask yourself this – do you feel he got everything he could out of this talented bunch?? Do you feel young budding stars like Josh Smith admired and respected their coach? Did he get the most out of the Marvin Williamses and Jeff Teague’s? Was he an impressive sideline coach you could believe in?? I thought so – now go get a new coach….
jimh
May 14th, 2010
2:13 pm
@Jim Why don’t you stick to Hockey. There are some good players on the Hawks. If you knew something about BB and you’d realize they have one of the best PF in the nba (too bad he plays at the Center). I agree with you at the 3 (esp if Chill comes back) but they need to look for a really good PG and some more size at the 5. That’s the only way they compete in SE.
What????
May 14th, 2010
2:13 pm
*Fired (I didn’t eat my wheaties this mornin’)
BigTimeTECHFan
May 14th, 2010
2:13 pm
I don’t give Woodson any credit on the teams improvement other then his involment in personal for the team. I think team is very talented but there is no system that sets them apart to make team prepare.
NBA Eastern conf is very week, last 5 years their have only been at most 4 good teams in any one year period Cavs, Magic, Cetlics, Pistons, Heat
50 wins this year not a big deal, Hawks did it on talent alone, any coach would have won 50 with this talent verses talent in the east.
Sometimes they looked coached up on D but that was mostly becuase outside events fired the Hawks up, like Celtic series, team was self motivated by being underdogs to team everyone said was the best. Woodson problem is he could not motivate the team.
So glad Woodson is gone, actually I did not think he should have been kept after his 1st year.
Kballer
May 14th, 2010
2:15 pm
The hawks will regret this move. Joe Johnson is the problem. Wants superstar money but plays like a punk in the postseason. Woody was the right coach. He just needed one more piece like a point guard or real center to make the move to another level. Yea we got swept in the second round the last 2 yrs but the opposing teams were just alot better. Would u rather b the nets or nicks now. I don’t think so. We were a playoff team with Woody. Thanks ownership for taking us back to the laughing stock of the NBA. Anybody who thinks different just wait to next season.
Michael
May 14th, 2010
2:15 pm
You all make it sound like the coach was holding the players back. If not for Woodson, the Hawks would have won the conference and Kobe would be trembling. If any team can realistically say their team of stars is not producing it’s the Dallas Mavericks. Hardly the Hawks. Then again, the Braves fired Joe Torre when he couldn’t win a title. Lo and behold he goes to the Yankees with a bunch of hall of famers and he becomes a genius. Phil Jackson with Jordan – Genius. Without Jordan, not so much. The Phil Jackson gets Kobe and Shaq — Genius again. It’s players!!!!!
GetwhatUpayfor
May 14th, 2010
2:16 pm
richbraveman, U do BB King well. read alot of your stuff on DOB. Welcome to Hawks blog.
Sautee
May 14th, 2010
2:16 pm
Where’s Clyde?
I guess for the near future Clyde will have to go with this:
Fire ??????????
Darryl Moore
May 14th, 2010
2:16 pm
Dumb move…doesn’t surprise me…this is ATLANTA…this is NOT a true sports town…anyone who comes in and makes a turn around is either traded or fired!!!
richbrave
May 14th, 2010
2:16 pm
Hey PHILLY:
BEWARE the IDES of JORDAN – Flip Saunders.
jimh
May 14th, 2010
2:18 pm
Hey Woody is a likable guy and will make a fine assistant but he should have been fired 3 years ago, He managed to stay there as a result of a dysfunctional ownership group.
i_am_soulstar
May 14th, 2010
2:18 pm
I don’t know why everyone wants to let Joe go. It’s absolutely impossible to upgrade his position unless you get Wade, Kobe, or possibly B. Roy, and that’s breaking even. If he’ll stay for less than max (because he definitely didn’t earn top dog money in the playoffs), then let’s resign the guy.
Am I the only that thinks the Hawks, as presently constituted (w/ the exception of Bibby) could be a championship caliber team with a dfferent coach?
MitchC
May 14th, 2010
2:19 pm
I’m not one of the people on the “Fire Woodson” bandwagon. In a way, I think he got hosed. This team was the worst team in the NBA when he took over, and he improved every season. To go from 13 win laughing stock his first year, to 53 wins this year, is a huge leap.
The playoff showing against Orlando was pitiful, but, unless there are some roster changes, I dont see this team competing with the Orlandos and Lakers of the league.
This Hawk team is at a crossroads, and it will be interesting to see what roster changes are made, and if a new head coach makes the difference. I wont be surprised if they take a step back next year. I’m not saying that they will revert back to being a 13 win joke again, but I will be very interesting to see what coach they choose, and who exactly is on the roster, that will make the big difference in trying to win a championship.
GetwhatUpayfor
May 14th, 2010
2:20 pm
Atlantis is now off in space…take ph with them please.
ejj
May 14th, 2010
2:20 pm
Now I know a lot of you know nothing about coaching, much less about playing. Some of the blame can put on Woodson, but some has to rest on the players. I watched them practice, and saw Woodson stressing defense, fast break, intensity, etc. The hawks have a lot of so called diva’s, that is a lot of ego’s to deal with, maybe the coach got tired. many of the names mentioned have never won, so they lack cred, if management is not willing to spend money to bring a winner in here, we have seen the best.
Melvin
May 14th, 2010
2:21 pm
What will Clyde talk about now? Oh yeah, sign Sean Williams…
Summer of Sund begins | Atlanta Hawks: Fan Nest
May 14th, 2010
2:21 pm
[...] AJC beat writer Michael Cunningham describes the situation on his Hawks beat blog. [...]
Sautee
May 14th, 2010
2:21 pm
“And the same ISO offense people criticize now produced 53 wins and a multitude of highlights throughout the year.”
True, but that same ISO offense also only produced 2 road wins in 5 playoff series.
How about Cleveland’s winning over 60 games two years in a row? Lot of good THAT did them, heh?
Woodson’s abysmal showing in the playoffs is why he’s gone. 53 wins and lots of highlights means NOTHING if you lay an egg in the most important games of the season.