New Hawks Ownership Search

[ATLHawksfan21]

They are both equal.

They both effectively do the same thing. Ferry wont attract talent, Gearon wont attract top FO people whose job is to attract talent.

We are arguing in circles. Agree to disagree

Last comment and then I will agree to disagree.

I just don't think they are equal. Gearon will have a negative effect on targeting talent from the very top of the organization to the very bottom of it. Bud will likely leave once Ferry is fired. The players will be gone as soon as their deals are up.

With Ferry, player acquisition is the only thing being affected and that's not even a certainty in my eyes. Bud will be happy and likely stay. The current players will be more likely to stay. We will have a better shot of winning sooner which will help heal the scars from this whole fiasco.

Enjoyed the discussion, Panda.

[PandaKidd]

What if Bud doesnt want Ferry to leave? I havent heard a vote of confidence from him ....yet

[Jamaaliver]

Couple of things to note:

1. Budenholzer is NOT a lame duck. In fact, if anything he's got more power than most coaches his age. We promoted him last week giving him power over both personnel decisions and players on the floor. (NOTE: in the workplace, an employee must ACCEPT a promotion. He agreed to more power, more responsibility and (likely) more pay.

2. Budenholzer is under contract. He can't simply walk away. And ATL Spirit hasn't fired a Hawks coach in over a decade. (Terry Stotts for those old enough to remember.)

3. Coach Bud interviewed for years before accepting/being offered this position. He just relocated his family from SAS after almost two decades there. There is no way his wife allows him to A)Take a step backward in his career or B)Relocate his family yet again this quickly just because his friend his gone.

ATLHawksfan21, you'll learn one day that WIFE >>>>>>>> Friend from work.

4. The ONLY person who came away from this most recent debacle unscathed was Mike Budenholzer. He got more power, he got a vote of confidence from the current ownership. Everybody else looks like a moron except Bud. If there is now a single person controlling the entire direction of the Hawks BASKETBALL decisions...it's Mike Budenholzer. At age 43, he is among the most powerful coaches in the entire NBA. He's not giving all that up because his buddy is gone.

Regarding NEW Ownership: he gets the best possible chance to win them over starting in just 6 weeks...by winning. Flat out. He wins games, he retains his title(s).

But the promotion for Bud is the key; it's basically an olive branch indicating Hawks Ownership still wants him around for the long haul. And his acceptance of that promotion tells ownership he's willing to stick around as well.

(Note: I suspect Bud in charge means a departure from the modus operandi used by Ferry the last few years. No more hoarding cap space in hopes of signing big free agents. No more passing over able bodied draftees in search of contracts to stash overseas. No more standing pat in the draft and letting our targets get scooped up just before we select. If Bud wants a player, and thinks he can contribute today, I suspect the entire Front Office will make it happen. EVERYONE's job is on the line right now. And the only way to save those jobs is to win.)

[ATLHawksfan21]

My worry of losing Bud is more based around Gearon staying than Ferry leaving. I'm confident that we can keep Bud, after the loss of Ferry, with new trust-worthy ownership. I am just worried that Bud may want to get away from Gearon as fast as possible after this whole ordeal. I would sacrifice Ferry for new ownership in a heartbeat if it was an option.

Do any of you know how long Bud's contract is for? I just keep seeing "multi-year contract". 3 years seems to be the common length on a new coaches contract so I will assume he has 2 years left on the current deal. If Ferry does go, I hope that Bud is allowed to keep that current promoted title and it's not just temporary while they sort things out.

At the end of the day, I only care about one thing and that's winning. Us fans need to show up on opening night against Indy and be louder than ever and show these guys that we have their backs. I know I will be there.

[PandaKidd]

If ferry goes I would suspect a new GM is brought in. But maybe a GM BUD WANTS?

WHO ELSE is aGM AND a coach? SVG?

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[PandaKidd]

http://www.peachtreehoops.com/2014/9/19 ... anny-ferry

[azuresou1]

If ferry goes I would suspect a new GM is brought in. But maybe a GM BUD WANTS?

WHO ELSE is aGM AND a coach? SVG?

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Several guys are both effectively the GM and Coach:
Phil Jackson
SVG
Flip Saunders
Coach Bud

[PandaKidd]

Phil Jackson =GOAT
SVG at least went to the finals
Flip Saunders -memory is hazy

All in all elite company

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[Jamaaliver]

Several guys are both effectively the GM and Coach:
Phil Jackson
SVG
Flip Saunders
Coach Bud

Phil Jackson =GOAT
SVG at least went to the finals
Flip Saunders -memory is hazy

All in all elite company

Not to argue semantics, but PHIL Jackson was never Coach and GM at the same time. He did have some say in personnel in LA, but operated with a GM with the Lakers and Bulls, respectively. Same with SVG and Flip. Although those two will pull double duty this coming season, for the first time in their careers.

Per NBA.COM:

Budenholzer joins the likes of the Los Angeles Clippers’ Doc Rivers, Minnesota’s Flip Saunders, Detroit’s Stan Van Gundy and of course San Antonio’s Gregg Popovich in holding added clout beyond their work on the court.

Pop in SAS has done both jobs for years. I forget if Doc Rivers did both while back in Orlando.

Either way, it'll be interesting to see how Bud, SVG, Doc and Flip manage both position at once this season.

[Jamaaliver]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/CVivlamoreAJC/status/514047282631942145[/tweet]

Not sure how much influence the ATL Mayor can have in this matter, but it's clear he's taking a more proactive approach after seeing the Braves flee to the suburbs earlier this year. No one wants to be the man in charge when 2/3 of the city's sports franchises relocated away.

Seriously hope it works. I can understand why an owner would want a fresh start, but I can't imagine the Hawks in another city.

[Jamaaliver]

not sure if this had already been mentioned here, but I found a breakdown of the Hawks ownership percentages:

Controlling owner Bruce Levenson, who individually owns 24 percent of the Hawks, will sell his share in the franchise following the discovery of a racially inflammatory email he sent in 2012. Reed said Levenson’s business partner Ed Peskowitz and Todd Foreman, the Washing ton-based owners, will also sell their shares in the team making 50.1 percent of the franchise available.

HERE

Meaning whoever buys the shares for sell will indeed have controlling interest of the team. While they'd have a difficult time moving the team, they should legally be able to leverage their authority to run the operation with their own people in place.

Certainly a mixed bag.

Also:

A new owner would have to add $200 million to the purchase price to move the team before 2017. There would also be a likely fee due the NBA to relocate, making that scenario unlikely.
One current owner told me the Hawks would move “over my dead body.”
The NBA would also not be in favor of a relocation of the Hawks given that Atlanta is a top-10 market nationally..

So the team leaving GA at least seems unlikely, as well.

[PandaKidd]

I don't see them leaving, I feel the most vulnerable team to leave would be the clippers.

Hawks moving doesn't make sense because a west team would have to flip or ANOTHER expansion team would have to happen

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[HMFFL]

Is having 24 percent in the team, even with controlling interest, really that appealing?
I think it hurts our chances at a good owner unless more of the group decides to sell.

[Jamaaliver]

Is having 24 percent in the team, even with controlling interest, really that appealing?
I think it hurts our chances at a good owner unless more of the group decides to sell.

Controlling owner Bruce Levenson, who individually owns 24 percent of the Hawks, will sell his share in the franchise...Levenson’s business partner[s] will also sell their shares in the team making 50.1 percent of the franchise available.

50.1% of the team is actually up for sale. Not just Levenson's 24%.

The new owner will automatically become Boss Hog on Day One.

So, I'd say yes.

[Hawk Eye]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/cvivlamoreajc/status/551049547087368192[/tweet]

[PandaKidd]

WOW they said Xmas was their deadline, pretty close

[Hawk Eye]

WOW they said Xmas was their deadline, pretty close

Yeah that was close! I wonder if they will also release who is buying the 100% that's at stake today as well.

[PandaKidd]

Tim Bontemps ‏@TimBontemps 1m1 minute ago

The scuttlebutt around the NBA is that the Hawks will sell for a very big number. If that happens, will be interesting to see impact of that

[PandaKidd]

Zach Lowe ‏@ZachLowe_NBA 19s20 seconds ago

Guess from insiders on 100% valuation of Hawks have generally ranged from $700M-$1B. High end seems too high to me, but we'll see.

[Hawk Eye]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/jasonwalkersbn/status/551056341943721985[/tweet]