McMillan needs the Hawks as much as the Hawks need him

[macdaddy]

Knowing that Travis wanted LP gone over the summer it would sure seem like he forced Nate in to be assistant in waiting.  But all indications are that LP was the one who pushed for Nate to be hired which leads me to believe that LP knew he was on the fence and thought Nate's experience could save him.   All speculation of course but I'm glad it worked itself out.

[NBASupes]

2 minutes ago, macdaddy said:

Knowing that Travis wanted LP gone over the summer it would sure seem like he forced Nate in to be assistant in waiting.  But all indications are that LP was the one who pushed for Nate to be hired which leads me to believe that LP knew he was on the fence and thought Nate's experience could save him.   All speculation of course but I'm glad it worked itself out.

This was the case. 

[JayBirdHawk]

 

 

[JayBirdHawk]

Interesting.

Quote

Nate McMillan’s future 

What I found interesting that I did not know previously is the first time Schlenk met McMillan was when he was already hired by Lloyd Pierce to be an assistant coach for the Hawks. Schlenk was not involved in any interview process with McMillan; Pierce had total control of whom he wanted to add to his staff. So, they originally met when McMillan was in Atlanta and already an employee.

As the Hawks have learned firsthand over the second half of the season, coaching matters, and the players have to believe in the person leading the team. That’s been the case with McMillan. They’ve taken to his fiery pregame speeches. They enjoy his corny gimmicks where he holds his fist up in front of the team and says they have to play that tight and connected. He’s gotten this group to believe they can win any game, as evidenced by the Hawks’ 27-11 record since McMillan took the interim tag.

Hawks GM Travis Schlenk on Knicks matchup, Nate McMillan’s future in Atlanta, Cam Reddish, offseason priorities – The Athletic

[macdaddy]

Yeah.  I think that's part of the 'will talk when the season's over'.   I don't think Nate plays the style that Travis envisions .   Honestly i thought given our personnel that pushing the pace (which is what i thought Travis/Lp wanted but could be wrong) was the way to go but now I'm thinking Nate is correct.  Or at least it's just as good to give Trae and Bogi/heurter/hunter more time to operate in the half court and give Capela and Collins more chances at offensive rebounds.    

[kg01]

4 minutes ago, macdaddy said:

Yeah.  I think that's part of the 'will talk when the season's over'.   I don't think Nate plays the style that Travis envisions .   Honestly i thought given our personnel that pushing the pace (which is what i thought Travis/Lp wanted but could be wrong) was the way to go but now I'm thinking Nate is correct.  Or at least it's just as good to give Trae and Bogi/heurter/hunter more time to operate in the half court and give Capela and Collins more chances at offensive rebounds.    

Perhaps we're a fast-pace team offensively but not defensively thus, slowing us down is more conducive to winning?

And, sorry, if Schlenk is seeing what's going on and is not yet sold on McMillan then he's thinking too dang hard.  Put a call in to the guy runnin' the Pacers and ask about over-thinking things.  Not specific to McMillan but, in general, w.r.t. getting enamored with the shiny new toy (coach).

[macdaddy]

18 minutes ago, kg01 said:

And, sorry, if Schlenk is seeing what's going on and is not yet sold on McMillan then he's thinking too dang hard.

yes yes yep and yes.  He probably knows this too.   And honestly even if Nate isn't what he envisioned he needs to look at the rebuild and notice the one thing he got wrong.  The coach.   So having this fall in his lap is probably the biggest stroke of luck this franchise has seen in a while.  

[marco102]

33 minutes ago, macdaddy said:

Yeah.  I think that's part of the 'will talk when the season's over'.   I don't think Nate plays the style that Travis envisions .   Honestly i thought given our personnel that pushing the pace (which is what i thought Travis/Lp wanted but could be wrong) was the way to go but now I'm thinking Nate is correct.  Or at least it's just as good to give Trae and Bogi/heurter/hunter more time to operate in the half court and give Capela and Collins more chances at offensive rebounds.    

 

25 minutes ago, kg01 said:

Perhaps we're a fast-pace team offensively but not defensively thus, slowing us down is more conducive to winning?

And, sorry, if Schlenk is seeing what's going on and is not yet sold on McMillan then he's thinking too dang hard.  Put a call in to the guy runnin' the Pacers and ask about over-thinking things.  Not specific to McMillan but, in general, w.r.t. getting enamored with the shiny new toy (coach).

If you read the article from the AJC, Travis stated that he and Nate agreed to evaluate Nate's position after year end.  Both are happy waiting until after the year. At least, that's what I gathered from the article.

Edited May 21, 2021 by marco102

[JayBirdHawk]

 

 

[JayBirdHawk]

 

 

[sturt]

1 hour ago, JayBirdHawk said:

 

 

 

Didn't see that one coming. Wow. So there's a "plan" to keep McM? Shams must have some awfully good informants.

 

I kid, of course.

 

But... but... but...

 

In McM's mind, can anyone really blame him if he doesn't have a little devil on his shoulder whispering, "Don't be fooled. Last time they actually signed you to a contract, and still divorced you. If this playoff series doesn't go well, and a Schlenk friend is available, you really think they won't reassess their thinking???"

 

[MarylandHawk]

23 minutes ago, sturt said:

 

Didn't see that one coming. Wow. So there's a "plan" to keep McM? Shams must have some awfully good informants.

 

I kid, of course.

 

But... but... but...

 

In McM's mind, can anyone really blame him if he doesn't have a little devil on his shoulder whispering, "Don't be fooled. Last time they actually signed you to a contract, and still divorced you. If this playoff series doesn't go well, and a Schlenk friend is available, you really think they won't reassess their thinking???"

 

Yeah we also have to be careful because Van Gundy down in N.O. Is on thin ice. If the season is over and the Hawks haven’t nailed down Nate, I can see them being aggressive to pursue him.   If we advance to the second round, Nate will definitely want to stay here. 

[HawkingAwesome]

PAY THIS MAN

[MarylandHawk]

1 hour ago, HawkingAwesome said:

PAY THIS MAN

He needs to finish the first round job. Lol. Travis is pretty ruthless about building a champion. See Mark Jackson. I hope the team comes through for Nate.  I would love to keep him here. 

[macdaddy]

You could tell Nate wanted this win badly.   I'm sure he's tired of hearing what a genius Thibs is when Nate stepped in and turned a lottery team into the best team (record wise) in the league down the stretch. 

[HawkingAwesome]

Believe it or not hawks are a pretty good defensive team now

[RedDawg#8]

8 minutes ago, HawkingAwesome said:

Believe it or not hawks are a pretty good defensive team now

Facts. He turned Kevin Heurter from a liability to guarding Randle head up. I cannot give him enough credit for that alone

[HawkingAwesome]

 

Edited May 24, 2021 by HawkingAwesome

[JayBirdHawk]

39 minutes ago, RedDawg#8 said:

Facts. He turned Kevin Heurter from a liability to guarding Randle head up. I cannot give him enough credit for that alone

I would disagree that it was all Nate, Huerter and Hawks special assistant talked about the work he put in during the off season on his body and watching film.  He did his work and Nate was able to help him along the way.

Quote

Earlier this year, former Hawks coach Lloyd Pierce urged Huerter to balance out his length, intelligence and positioning with physicality. With De’Andre Hunter and Bogdan Bogdanovic out for much of the early season, Huerter was tasked with guarding Bradley Beal and James Harden back to back at the end of January. Two tough defensive assignments under optimal conditions, let alone with a thin roster behind him, but Huerter held Beal to 26 points, his lowest scoring performance up to that point, and was able to pressure deflections from the perennially cool-headed Harden.

Some of Huerter’s improved in-game physicality comes from a shift in his diet this season, he’s cut gluten and fried foods completely, and from tapping into his natural vigilance and narrowing that scope on a hapless mark. But much more of it has come from study. Specifically, game tape — hours of it.

While the act of watching tape might be considered passive, the application of it is painstakingly physical. A millimeter tweak of an elbow here, the pivot of a foot there, the process of taking what are essentially split-second mistakes and adjusting them real time as the habits of your brain and body try and override you at every turn.

“It takes time,” Nate Babcock, special assistant for the Hawks says over the phone, “Because sometimes these movements aren’t natural to them, or something that doesn’t come naturally to them, they need to physically feel it. Sometimes they need to actually visually watch themselves do it. Kevin luckily doesn’t have a lot of bad habits. But he has some, and trying to re-break those down and build them back up again, it takes a little time.”

 

[cam1218]

3 hours ago, JayBirdHawk said:

I would disagree that it was all Nate, Huerter and Hawks special assistant talked about the work he put in during the off season on his body and watching film.  He did his work and Nate was able to help him along the way.

 

I think a lot of us have seen glimpses of defensive and playmaking potential from a lot of our young core over the last few years. I’m sure CLP helped craft some of those skills, but Nate has really found a way to build their confidence and have those glimpses turn into consistent effort.

Still some work to be done, but it’s been a quick upward trajectory with consistency and belief under Nate.