February 21, 2023
Hawks General Manager Landry Fields announced today that Nate McMillan has been relieved of his head coaching duties. The Hawks currently have a 29-30 record (.492 winning percentage).
Named the 14th full-time head coach in Atlanta franchise history on July 8, 2021, McMillan tallied a 99-80 record (.553) as head coach of the Hawks, including a 27-11 record (.711) while serving as interim head coach in the second half of the 2020-21 season. McMillan guided the Hawks to the 2021 Eastern Conference Finals, their second appearance in Atlanta history.
“I would like to thank Nate for his leadership and professionalism during his time with the Hawks. He is truly a class act, and we appreciate the graciousness and work ethic he brought with him every day,” Fields said. “Decisions like these, especially in-season, are always extremely difficult, but we believe it’s in the best interest of our team to move forward with another voice leading the way.”
Over 19 seasons as a head coach, McMillan has compiled 760-668 record (.532) with the Seattle SuperSonics, Portland Trail Blazers, Indiana Pacers and Hawks. His 760 wins rank 18th on the all-time wins list for NBA coaches. In 11 trips to the postseason, his teams have a 28-48 record (.368), including a 11-12 record (.478) with Atlanta.
Joe Prunty will serve as interim head coach. Prunty joined the Hawks in July 2021 as lead assistant. Before joining the Hawks, Prunty served as an assistant coach with the Phoenix Suns (2018-19), Milwaukee Bucks (2014-18, including serving as interim head coach over the final 37 games (21-16) of the 2017-18 season and 17 games in 2015-16), Brooklyn Nets (2013-14), Cleveland Cavaliers (2010-13), Portland Trail Blazers (2008-10), Dallas Mavericks (2005-08) and San Antonio Spurs (2000-05), where he won three NBA Championships.
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