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Schlenk's Press Conference This Morning


lethalweapon3

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Programming Notes:

* My chosen nickname for our new GM is "Sausage". Travis "Sausage" Schlenk. Rolls off the tongue real well, spittle-free. Only way that would work out better is if his last name was "Schpatty".

* Also, any egregious personnel errors he makes in his Hawks tenure will heretofore be known as "Travisties".

Carrying on...

(tomorrow is today)

"Getting to know you" interview tease before the big presser this morning... Don't let me catch you rocking a Mets jersey at Fat Matt's, Sausage! Maybe some Jason Aldean halftime concerts in our future?

~lw3

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Sorry, lw.  'Sausage' is already taken as a nickname.  @Dolfan23 was dubbed 'sausage' by his cellmates since he's the go-to sausage smoker on C-block. (hehe)

(Was that adequate payback, @Spud2Nique?)

Secondly, I love 'Travisties' as a moniker for any of his mistakes.  Would've also accepted 'Travestites' :ohmy:

On a serious note, can someone post a synopsis on anything substantive Schlenk-enstein says today?

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19 minutes ago, sturt said:

Yeah, is this being streamed anywheres?

Fox app has it. Some notes (in between delays) ...

- Budz not in attendance in protest .. kidding, he's at son's HS graduation per Bawb's introduction.

- 3 areas of importance per Ressler: 1. key leadership positions in GS, involved in key acquisitions/trades, 2. started at bottom and progressed up, gaining full understanding of bball operations at all levels, 3. Great collaborator, expect him to merge bball operations with coaches/on-court process (?)

- Per Ressler, Schlenk noted the progress franchise has made to become player-friendly

- Schlenk with the power red tie game.

Schlenk:

- New practice facility, dleague team, renovation, community development gave sense of where the owners want to take the organization.

- Thanks his wife for holdin' down the fort (aww).  (Take notes @JayBirdHawk, she's in the kitchen where she belongs.  High-fives @Dolfan23)

- "Now it's time to get to work ..."  Plans to get with Budz and staff to plan for future. Bunker down in the next 3 weeks to make draft, free agency decisions, etc.

- Plan is to be player friendly to make this place players want to come and to bring their families to ...

- Plan to be communicative from top to bottom, plans to encourage inclusiveness.  He doesn't plan to have all the answers ...

- Plan to be championship caliber and sustainable ..

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Well he said having so many picks give them more chances to hit, so I don't think they will trade up this year. Then again, he did talk about making deals to get superstars, so maybe we will if we think there is one.  Sounds to me like he will want the team to be young with all the talk of development.

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4 minutes ago, CP61 said:

Well he said having so many picks give them more chances to hit, so I don't think they will trade up this year. Then again, he did talk about making deals to get superstars, so maybe we will if we think there is one.  Sounds to me like he will want the team to be young with all the talk of development.

Any mention of Sap?   I hope we can work some deal.  It may help that all the GS guys are talking about taking some discounts.   Sap knows the Hawks aren't going to win crap he we give him a full max.   

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3 minutes ago, macdaddy said:

Any mention of Sap?   I hope we can work some deal.  It may help that all the GS guys are talking about taking some discounts.   Sap knows the Hawks aren't going to win crap he we give him a full max.   

He was asked about Sap (see my earlier post about it). I didn't want to add my personal opinion to my earlier post, but I definitely didn't view Schlenk's answer as a ringing endorsement for resigning Paul.

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5 minutes ago, macdaddy said:

Any mention of Sap?   I hope we can work some deal.  It may help that all the GS guys are talking about taking some discounts.   Sap knows the Hawks aren't going to win crap he we give him a full max.   

They were noncommittal on him which is a change from what's Ressler had said in the past. I didn't get the feel that he will be retained at all costs because Schlenk stressed flexibility in the roster when it comes to contracts. A max deal would take that away.

 

 

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So I got a phone call ( @Spud2Nique's gf asking for a date.  I'm like, nah guurl. ..) and my FoxSports app farted out.  Here's more from the Q/A ...

CViv asks about interview process, West's recommendation, etc. ...

Ressler: met with 8-10 guys, Schlenk's experience and having had every job and a championship pedigree, mentors and colleagues separated him from the rest.

Timetable for championship-ness: Took GState 7 years so it's not a quick process.  Maintain flexibility, accumulating assets, developing your own talent.  Have 11 picks in the future.  In a better place now than GS was.  On players, we have good players (not a bad team) and some flexibility.  If a trade for a superstar comes available, we'll be in position to do that.

On style: Budz and he spent a few days together, off to a great start, share a lot of philosophies.

More challenging to come into a 10yr period of "success"? ... Look to maintain playoff-level but want to maintain flexibility.  Hard to get to championship level but need to maintain flex/assets

Bark Madley: Any issues meshing with Budz who had the title you now occupy ... Budz and I are acquaintances, not expecting any issues.  Success is dependent on each other.

What did you see in Atlanta, makes you think they can be on a champ level ... Touted owners' passion, resources there to build a winning franchise.  Same passion felt in MIA/GS ownership.

On the Millsap decision ... Arguably the best player on team, clearly a priority.  Has to get with Budz/staff to hammer out future, obv. Paul is a part of that (that process, not that future?)

On the draft .... no foolproof way to be successful.  Being "right" 60% of the time is considered success for GS.  Being right more than wrong is the goal (?)  Staff is capable of developing young players.

ID'd any potential franchise players in this draft .... "franchise" players at 19,31 is hard but has ID'd some players that can help in the future for sure.

Schultz asked how many of the 8-10 had been GM's?  Ressler: I don't think any

Follow-up: What tells you Schlenk was ready to make that leap to being a 1st time GM ...

We're pretty successful (10yrs in playoffs) so owners are impressed with that but want to get to next level.  Felt Schlenk has an understanding to help make the jump to the next level.  Other candidates showed an understanding in some areas, Travis offered all of the above.

On being a tax-paying team ... lol question for Ressler hyuk, hyuk, doesn't make sense unless you're competing for championship.  Be responsible for these folks' money.  Until we get to that level, can't say it's a smart business decision.

(long pause) .. Ressler: I'd share that view.  lololol

 

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Very interesting interview! Here are the things that stuck out to me:

- Schlenk said it took the Warriors 7 years to build the championship team they have now from the time he was in the front office.

-Schlenk said Hawks are in a way better position than the warriors were when they first started building a contender...I'm not sure if he means that by cap wise, talent wise, or both.

-Schlenk mentioned that millsap was a priority but from the way he explained it, sounds like he means Sap is a top priority to be discussed and not necessarily resigned.

-Schlenk said he will not be solely making decisions on his own and will involve all levels.

-Schlenk said the Hawks front office and ownership has the same passion as the Warriors front office to build a championship contender.

-Schlenk told reporters that bud was one of the best coaches in the NBA who has a staff behind him with a proven track record to develop players (seemed extremely sincere when saying this...if I had to guess that's probably one of the reasons other than ownership he decided to come to Atlanta as he did in so little words say he wouldn't have left the warriors likely unless that was in place)

-When asked about going over the cap , Schlenk said as a GM he has a priority to be smart with the owners money and wouldn't ask Ressler to go over the cap unless the team was one player away from being able to contend for a championship on a yearly basis....I respect that answer and seems to me money won't be a problem once or if the talent ever arrives in Atlanta as Ressler will pay for a real contender.

-There's going to be way more communication throughout the year including during games according to Ressler and Schlenk.

-Last...Schlenk was asked about the upcoming draft. He said he hadn't looked at the first round until recently being that the Warriors only have 2nd round picks but he likes where the Hawks are picking and while he doesn't see any franchise players for where the Hawks will be picking he did say that they already have guys listed that they really like for our first two picks.

 

i really liked that first interview by Schlenk as officially being the new GM. He seems extremely sincere in everything he's saying ! Either that or he's a great liar at the podium. Lol

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Aside: Note to Hawks HQ... someone dropped the ball in getting that Facebook page feed going... that should have been up and ready 15 minutes before the start, and instead, it didn't appear on the page until 5 minutes into it (assuming they started on-time).

Now to the substance...

Schlenk didn't say anything one wouldn't have expected him to say, and neither did Ressler. But what I found most interesting... and reassuring... was the body language of Ressler as he talked about Schlenk uniquely checking off all the boxes in what they sought. I just felt I saw it in his eyes that that wasn't just empty hype.

And I also appreciated how Ressler acknowledged briefly that, who knows, they could eventually find that Schlenk wasn't the right guy after all... and don't miss my point in that, not that there's reason to doubt the hire... but it says to me that you, Mr. Ressler, are prepared to be brutally honest and related, you're going to hold this guy accountable.

I think that's the most important takeaway--Ressler's as plugged in about winning a championship as a fan could hope your owner would be...

He's demanding, and I believe that's essential.

What I wanted to learn that I didn't learn because no one asked the specific question...

Are we now embarking on the more traditional owner-GM-coach hierarchy, and/or what nuances are different from that traditional hierarchy, and/or what nuances are different from the decision-making structure previously used?

Yes, I thought all signs seemed to point in that traditional direction, but I'd like to have heard it actually specifically concretely addressed--because, after all, this is very different retaining the guy who used to supervise the GM as the head coach, and it just seems almost naive to think this should just function in some common way. To me, anyhow.

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7 minutes ago, Bankingitbig said:

He was asked about Sap (see my earlier post about it). I didn't want to add my personal opinion to my earlier post, but I definitely didn't view Schlenk's answer as a ringing endorsement for resigning Paul.

lol I don't know. Seems to me that he may be willing to resign Sap but not for full max. Sap is likely a goner though as he talks too frequently about staying flexible, being younger, and allowing what he sees as a great coaching staff to develop the young talent they acquire through draft.

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12 minutes ago, JTB said:

lol I don't know. Seems to me that he may be willing to resign Sap but not for full max. Sap is likely a goner though as he talks too frequently about staying flexible, being younger, and allowing what he sees as a great coaching staff to develop the young talent they acquire through draft.

Sounds like we are drafting one of the nice young Nigerians to me. I know I know...I read between the lines ...

 

#ilovethenigerians

#semiojeleye

#OGbossAnunoby

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11 minutes ago, sturt said:

Are we now embarking on the more traditional owner-GM-coach hierarchy, and/or what nuances are different from that traditional hierarchy, and/or what nuances are different from the decision-making structure previously used?

 

The reporters were kind of weak with their questions... Definitely wished someone would have asked Ressler straight up how much input he will have in personnel decisions and if Schlenk will have final say.

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Yeah, what I took from it w.r.t. Sap .. he gone.

Very non-committal answers.  Lots of talk about the importance of maintaining flexibility, developing young players and being able to attain a superstar via trade.

None of that smells like locking an aging guy in to a long-term deal.

I think he handled it well though.  Called Sap 'perhaps the best player on the team' and acknowledged his leave/return decision was an important part of the discussion on team direction.

I wish Budz would've been there though.

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18 minutes ago, kg01 said:

I'm like, nah guurl. ..

I coulda sworn I heard a different dialect last time I was in the nearby Cul de sac....oh...maybe that's ur Cul de sac "phone voice"?

IMG_0188.GIF

IMG_0189.GIF

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22 minutes ago, Spud2Nique said:

I coulda sworn I heard a different dialect last time I was in the nearby Cul de sac....oh...maybe that's ur Cul de sac "phone voice"?

IMG_0188.GIF

IMG_0189.GIF

This is insensitive.  I identify as white on the phone with your gf.

ETA: Oh crap, does this mean I'm catfishin' your gf?  lol

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