Possible GM Candidates

[KB21]

I think it will be a few more days before the decision is ultimately made, but I believe the Hawks will soon part ways with Billy Knight as the general manager. The fact that ownership blocked his attempt to fire Mike Woodson is a sign to me that they have lost faith in Billy and want to go in a different direction. We will see how they approach this and whether they decide to hire the GM and let the GM have a say in the fate of Mike Woodson or not.

Here are some names that I have seen mentioned for other jobs in the past two years that may come up in a search for a new GM. Note that these are not rumors. These are only names that I am throwing out there.

R.C. Buford -- If you can get him, I think you do it. R.C. has the title of GM in San Antonio, but Greg Popovich has the power of final say over all personnel decisions. That means a team that offers R.C. the final say that he doesn't currently have can get him. R.C. has had a major hand in building the San Antonio Spurs into what they have been recently and are today.

Kiki Vandeweghe -- He is currently Rod Thorn's assistant in New Jersey. Kiki turned down interviews with the New York Knicks for their GM job, so he may be content with staying in New Jersey for the time being. Kiki has a solid track record though and should be a candidate. My guess is, he stays in New Jersey and gains more power within that organization.

David Griffin -- David is currently the Phoenix Suns' assistant GM. He has received interest for GM jobs over the past two years but has been unable to land one yet. He comes from the PR side of the operations, so he is a very outgoing personality that is media friendly and fan friendly. He has had a hand in constructing the Phoenix roster as it is.

Scott Perry -- Scott spent seven seasons in Detroit as an understudy to Joe Dumars and John Hammond, so he has been around a winning formula. After interviewing for the Seattle GM job this past season, Scott was hired to be their assistant GM. Many in the league feel it is only a matter of time before Scott becomes a GM.

Jeff Weltman -- Jeff was Kiki Vandeweghe's right hand man in Denver and is currently the Detroit Pistons assistant GM. He took Scott Perry's position this past season with Detroit after Scott moved on to Seattle. Many around the league consider Jeff to be an innovative mind, and Kiki leaned on him a lot in Denver. He has been exposed to the way Detroit runs their operations for a year now, so that is a plus.

Tommy Sheppard -- Tommy is the assistant GM in Washington right now, and much like David Griffin, he comes from the PR side of the operations. He is considered to be an up and coming GM candidate and has had a hand in building the Washington Wizards roster over the past few years. Tommy also spent some time in Denver with Kiki Vandeweghe and Jeff Weltman.

Gary Fitzsimmons -- Gary has been around the NBA for a long time now, and last year, he interviewed for the Seattle GM job. He is coming off his first season as the assistant GM in Atlanta after previously working as the director of player personnel for the Hawks, Warriors, and Cavaliers. He has a wealth of knowledge about the game and may be ready for the opportunity.

Lance Blanks -- Lance Blanks spent six years in San Antonio's scouting department before following Danny Ferry to Cleveland. He's another young guy in the business that many in the league believe will be a GM before long. He comes from a proven system.

Tony DiLeo -- Tony has spent several seasons in Philadelphia as Billy King's right hand man, and he was passed over for their GM job this past season. Many feel that DiLeo is ready to become a GM. He has essentially run the 76ers drafts over the past few years.

[NJHAWK]

I would imagine any GM who were to come here wouldnt be a big name like Buford because these guys know that toatl contol is not possible with the Spirit group. Also what gm with any cloat would take a job if he cant pick his own coach?

[AnakinJoe]

Fitzsimmons makes the most sense to me because we need to make the right decisions with the Joshes. So having someone who has personal experience watching those guys for the last 2 years seems to like a great asset. And he worked with Fratello in Cleveland, so hopefully he would bring him on board as Head Coach. Lastly, as a current employee, he understands the dysfunctional nature of our ownership situation and would accept the job with fulll knowledge of the operating guidelines and available resources (or lack thereof). There should be greater mutual comfort between Fitz and the ASG.

[Packfill]

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Fitzsimmons makes the most sense to me because we need to make the right decisions with the Joshes. So having someone who has personal experience watching those guys for the last 2 years seems to like a great asset. And he worked with Fratello in Cleveland, so hopefully he would bring him on board as Head Coach. Lastly, as a current employee, he understands the dysfunctional nature of our ownership situation and would accept the job with fulll knowledge of the operating guidelines and available resources (or lack thereof). There should be greater mutual comfort between Fitz and the ASG.

I tend to disagree on that. I think the Hawks need someone from outside the organization that has a different perspective on things. The Hawks need someone who can identify the flaws in the roster and make decisions without any ties to the existing players. Someone with experience would be a plus - particularly someone who knows how to make a good coaching hire.

[AnakinJoe]

Sorry but I don't think we'll be making any ground-breaking moves any time soon. Until the ownership fiasco is settled (and we have another $10-12M of payroll budget), we're managing around the fringes of this roster. That's why Fitz makes the most sense to me... we're not looking at whole-sale changes for the youngest roster in the league. There are no huge contracts to jettison off the team. We're not considering signing a UFA to a max deal. Nor trading for a max player. The best we can hope for is to re-sign the Joshes and spend around $6M on 2 veteran players (like Elson and Jarvis Hayes). To your point, the biggest decision will be at the Head Coach position, and the owners may not allow the GM to even make that call. I think the goal next season is 45 wins and a settled ownership. We don't need an elite GM to get us to that modest level of achievement.

[Diesel]

John Gabrielle?

Billy King?

[Seano]

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Kiki Vandeweghe

-- He is currently Rod Thorn's assistant in New Jersey. Kiki turned down interviews with the New York Knicks for their GM job, so he may be content with staying in New Jersey for the time being. Kiki has a solid track record though and should be a candidate. My guess is, he stays in New Jersey and gains more power within that organization.

Didn't Kiki kind of suck as GM in Denver though? I could be totally wrong, but I don't think he was well-liked by Nuggets fans at all.

[KB21]

It will be interesting to see who the Hawks get.