The real reason Bud was made General Manager

[Hawkmoor]

The new Hawk's owners don't care if Bud was the right guy for that gig. Here is why:

 The hawks "ownership " plan. Those investors (owners) are gonna fix up Phillips arena and sell the team within 5 years. That's why they gave bud the keys to the whole basketball side of the operation.

With the new TV contracts and the revenue from a remodeled Phillips arena, those investors are gonna flip the Hawk's. That's EXACTLY why you are not hearing anything from them. Being new "owners", you would think they would be front and center (like the mavericks owner).

No, they are cold hard nosed investors. The head guy and Grant Hill are into PRIVATE EQUITY. They buy corporations,  leverage investor money and fix up the corporation, and flip it for a profit. That's what they DO.

The Hawk's are no exception. They could care less what bud does as long as the hawks are not a bottom feeder team like Philadelphia.  That's why bud is making these head scratching moves. He is gonna keep payroll right about where it is now, per instructions from the hawks "ownership ".

Edited December 7, 2015 by Hawkmoor

[Wurider05]

Damn I was thinking the samething as soon as they wanted a new arena. Braves are doing the samething.

[Hawkmoor]

1 hour ago, Wurider05 said:

Damn I was thinking the samething as soon as they wanted a new arena. Braves are doing the samething.

When they first bought the team,  I thought about this.  They have confirmed it by how they have handled the team.  

[benhillboy]

I was leery of the Grant Hill involvement from the jump.  It reeked of "let's jump on this goldmine investment" much more than "let's finish building this franchise into a consistent winner".  

Of course at the time Scrooge McDuck would've been better than the ASG, so any new owner(s) with a clean slate would've been welcomed.  At least we know Al won't be maxed.

[High5]

I agree with the likelihood of the new ownership not being in it for the long haul, but I don't think that has had any affect on Bud's responsibility or the decisions he's made. 

[sturt]

I'd have to see substantially  more evidence before I could get to that conclusion. Reason for suspicion? Okay. Reason for conclusion? Not nearly enough, imo.

I mean, if they were this flippant about it, there really wasn't any substantial reason to rid themselves of Ferry, was there? THAT, to me, would have been better evidence for that conclusion, b/c paying off Ferry certainly wasn't helpful to the bottom line. Bud brought last season's success, but what put it over the top is the perception that he's a younger Pop. So, once the decision is made to jettison Ferry, the decision practically... and pragmatically... made itself.

[Hawkmoor]

6 hours ago, benhillboy said:

I was leery of the Grant Hill involvement from the jump.  It reeked of "let's jump on this goldmine investment" much more than "let's finish building this franchise into a consistent winner".  

Of course at the time Scrooge McDuck would've been better than the ASG, so any new owner(s) with a clean slate would've been welcomed.  At least we know Al won't be maxed.

Exactly. The other NBA owners and commissioners were at a point with the prior hawks ownership, that they wouldve approved a sale of the team to Flavor Flav . ANYTHING was better than Atlanta Spirit. I bet the ONLY contigency they told Grant Hill was to keep the team in Atlanta.

Edited December 7, 2015 by Hawkmoor

[AHF]

I don't see any connection between a private equity model of investment (buy with intent to invest and then flip for a profit) and making Bud GM.  If "a" is true (the private equity assumption) why does "b" (Bud = GM) follow?  

[Hawkmoor]

12 minutes ago, sturt said:

I'd have to see substantially  more evidence before I could get to that conclusion. Reason for suspicion? Okay. Reason for conclusion? Not nearly enough, imo.

I mean, if they were this flippant about it, there really wasn't any substantial reason to rid themselves of Ferry, was there? THAT, to me, would have been better evidence for that conclusion, b/c paying off Ferry certainly wasn't helpful to the bottom line. Bud brought last season's success, but what put it over the top is the perception that he's a younger Pop. So, once the decision is made to jettison Ferry, the decision practically... and pragmatically... made itself.

Honestly, i think that the new ownership FELL into a perfect scenario with Bud.  The fact that bud DOES know how to coach, fell into perfect harmony with what the new investors are trying to do. I agree, that if you looked at this, what im saying could be called a LEAP. What sells it  FOR ME is the fact that these are young, NEW owners, who have done NOTHING to be a part of the face of this franchise. You combine that with the fact that they ARE private equity investors, and it SMELLS of a flip job wherein they have a bottom line that Bud and his co general manager are told to stay at and not try and really get over the top and compete with Cleveland and Golden State. ( get locked into big contracts with a Dwight Howard type player)

[Hawkmoor]

15 minutes ago, AHF said:

I don't see any connection between a private equity model of investment (buy with intent to invest and then flip for a profit) and making Bud GM.  If "a" is true (the private equity assumption) why does "b" (Bud = GM) follow?  

MONEY INVESTED in players. Bud made ZERO big moves at the trade deadline last year, when it was obvious the hawks have a flawed roster. He will do the same this year. The Hawks are gonna HOLD the course on payroll.  With the private equity model, im pretty sure they are using OTHER people's money to fund this whole deal. Thats the leverage. In order to do that, the Hawks revenue must be at a high enough spread vs debt to get back the principal and interest on the funding.  Thats why they are remodeling Phillips Arena. Sure, there are some design flaws in the stadium, but not enough to warrant what the new investors are doing, UNLESS, the goal is to increase operating revenues AND the end game of increasing the value of the team, so that all parties make a profit. 

The timing was PERFECT.  With the new tv contracts coming out next year, the value of all NBA teams will increase. If you DONT increase payroll to keep up, the profit spread INCREASES substantially. Grant Hill knows what he is doing. They dont recruit dummies up at Duke University. He is a real investor.

Edited December 7, 2015 by Hawkmoor

[Guest]

16 minutes ago, AHF said:

I don't see any connection between a private equity model of investment (buy with intent to invest and then flip for a profit) and making Bud GM.  If "a" is true (the private equity assumption) why does "b" (Bud = GM) follow?  

'Cause it matches the agenda someone's trying to put forth?

Also, the Spurs owner must be in it to flip it too since he's not making himself the story like Cuban does in Dallas.  Heat owners too.  

[Hawkmoor]

5 minutes ago, kg01 said:

'Cause it matches the agenda someone's trying to put forth?

Also, the Spurs owner must be in it to flip it too since he's not making himself the story like Cuban does in Dallas.  Heat owners too.  

Show me proof that Grant Hill and his business partners are NOT private equity investors, then we can talk.  That's what they DO....the end game is to flip the team.

Edited December 7, 2015 by Hawkmoor

[Hawkmoor]

47 minutes ago, sturt said:

I'd have to see substantially  more evidence before I could get to that conclusion. Reason for suspicion? Okay. Reason for conclusion? Not nearly enough, imo.

I mean, if they were this flippant about it, there really wasn't any substantial reason to rid themselves of Ferry, was there? THAT, to me, would have been better evidence for that conclusion, b/c paying off Ferry certainly wasn't helpful to the bottom line. Bud brought last season's success, but what put it over the top is the perception that he's a younger Pop. So, once the decision is made to jettison Ferry, the decision practically... and pragmatically... made itself.

One more thing. Forgot to address the Ferry situation. Ferry was the FIRST THING that had to go. Paying him to leave was little compared to potential LOST revenue by keeping him.  This is about increasing PROFITS. How do you do that? There are several ways. One is FAN ATTENDANCE and season tickets. NO way was Ferry staying on board with the risk of alienating thousands of fans in Atlanta. That wouldve hurt the bottom line. Thats why Steve Koonin has been in OVERDRIVE repairing the damage that Ferry and Gearon did to the public perception of the team, so that the investors will be happy.  Man, this thing isnt hard to figure out.

 

ON a side note, the Braves are doing the EXACT same thing.  The only difference is they LIED about what they are doing, but their moves are the direct opposite. New stadium, increased profits, potential flip for liberty media. They have gotten rid of all but 3 contracts on that team. Grant Hill and his partners are smart enough to NOT come out and say they are gonna do this or that. They sitting back in the cut and waiting on the flip.............

Edited December 7, 2015 by Hawkmoor

[Guest]

16 minutes ago, Hawkmoor said:

MONEY INVESTED in players. Bud made ZERO big moves at the trade deadline last year, when it was obvious the hawks have a flawed roster. He will do the same this year. The Hawks are gonna HOLD the course on payroll.  With the private equity model, im pretty sure they are using OTHER people's money to fund this whole deal. Thats the leverage. In order to do that, the Hawks revenue must be at a high enough spread vs debt to get back the principal and interest on the funding.  Thats why they are remodeling Phillips Arena. Sure, there are some design flaws in the stadium, but not enough to warrant what the new investors are doing, UNLESS, the goal is to increase operating revenues AND the end game of increasing the value of the team, so that all parties make a profit. 

The timing was PERFECT.  With the new tv contracts coming out next year, the value of all NBA teams will increase. If you DONT increase payroll to keep up, the profit spread INCREASES substantially. Grant Hill knows what he is doing. They dont recruit dummies up at Duke University. He is a real investor.

New ownership was not in place or approved at trade deadline last year, so that point gets tossed.

If they didn't sign Sap to a max deal this offseason you may have a point. 

And don't mention exceeding cap to resign DMC blah blah blah because we couldn't. 

 

[Guest]

This thread is making me feel bad inside. Remains to be seen what happens with us off the floor. But on it, I want to get back to kicking butt and taking names. 

[Guest]

19 minutes ago, Hawkmoor said:

Show me proof that Grant Hill and his business partners are NOT private equity investors, then we can talk.  That's what they DO....the end game is to flip the team.

What does that even mean?

You know what, don't even answer.  I blame myself for even venturing into this ridiculous thread.

[Guest]

19 minutes ago, Hawkmoor said:

Show me proof that Grant Hill and his business partners are NOT private equity investors, then we can talk.  That's what they DO....the end game is to flip the team.

You do know that private equity buying into the NBA is on the rise.

I guess the Celtics, GSW, Raptors, Pistons and Sixers will be flipping their teams too.

[Guest]

6 minutes ago, JayBirdHawk said:

You do know that private equity buying into the NBA is on the rise.

I guess the Celtics, GSW, Raptors, Pistons and Sixers will be flipping their teams too.

*gasp* What's first, Seattle Celtics gear or Louisville Pistons schwag?  Kansas City Sixers has a nice ring to it.  Vancouver Raptors maybe?  They wouldn't even have to update their passports.  Everybody wins!

[Guest]

28 minutes ago, Spud2Nique said:

This thread is making me feel bad inside. Remains to be seen what happens with us off the floor. But on it, I want to get back to kicking butt and taking names. 

Why is a "reach" thread making you sick. As long as the team isn't moving and ownership isn't pulling an 'ASG'  and they are investing in the floor product I really don't care who owns the team.

[macdaddy]

Ferry's buyout came entirely from ASG as a condition of the sale.   So the new guys didn't put any money toward that.   Bud was made President of basketball ops because that's the best way to keep him around.   I'm sure there were other teams ready to lure him away.     And there is a salary cap.  So the opportunities to 'increase payroll' are highly restricted.