A couple championship general managers – Cavaliers general manager David Griffin and former Pistons general manager Joe Dumars – have emerged as contenders to run the Hawks’ front office.
Another name to watch: Thunder assistant general manager Troy Weaver.
Marc Stein of ESPN:
Another executive, per league sources, poised to emerge as a candidate to lead the Hawks' revamped front office: Oklahoma City's Troy Weaver
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) May 8, 2017
Weaver has earned respect for his ability to evaluate players in totality – their talent and their personalities. His ability to connect with people offers a broad pool of players to choose from and still fit a culture.
But Atlanta just demoted Mike Budenholzer (president) and Wes Wilcox (general manager), and Weaver has never held a title as lofty as the ones those two just lost. Would they answer to someone so unproven? That’s not a drawback with Griffin and Dumars.
On the other hand, if the Hawks believe Weaver would do the best job, they should value him over Wilcox. Integrating Budenholzer, who’s also head coach, into the new structure will be trickier.
Weaver deserves a chance to run his own team somewhere, though Atlanta brings complications.