Hawks reach agreement with Nate McMillan for permanent head coaching position

The Atlanta Hawks have removed the interim tag from head coach Nate McMillan.

According to Shams Charania, the Hawks and McMillan have an agreement in place for him to become the team’s leader on a permanent basis. According to Adrian Wojnarowski, the deal is for four years.

McMillan led Atlanta to the conference finals after finishing the regular season 27-11 when taking over for Lloyd Pierce.

Trae Young and John Collins both voiced support for McMillan after Atlanta’s Game 6 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks and the front office clearly agreed with their sentiments. McMillan took over a team that was 14-20 and turned them into a contender. The Hawks were smart to get this deal done without wasting any time.

It was also unclear who would replace McMillan if the Hawks decided to look elsewhere. Rick Carlisle is joining the Indiana Pacers and Gregg Popovich isn’t leaving the San Antonio Spurs any time soon. There would no clear upgrade at coach if Atlanta decided McMillan wasn’t the right fit, although he clearly is based on this season’s turnaround.

This news solves Atlanta’s first main offseason talking point. Next up is waiting to see what type of offers Collins gets as a restricted free agent. Atlanta will probably match any offer he receives, but the big man did turn down a $90 million extension this season. Let’s see if that pays off for Collins.

The Hawks are +3500 to win the NBA title next season according to DraftKings Sportsbook.