Mike Budenholzer acknowledged that he has had several conversations with Hawks general manager Danny Ferry about the team’s yet-to-be vacant head coach position.
The Spurs assistant coach, one of several known Hawks candidates, told the San Antonio Express-News that he had a recent face-to-face meeting with Ferry recently. He declined to give any specifics of the meeting.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported May 18 that Budenholzer had been interviewed by the Hawks
“I want the focus to stay with what we’re doing,” Budenholzer told the paper the Spurs clinched a spot in the NBA Finals Monday. “What I will say is I’m open to listening and considering opportunities more so than I have been in the past. But I really don’t want this to become a story or a distraction in any way.”
There is no NBA rule that prevents a team from speaking to a candidate in the employ of another team, even during the playoffs, as long as permission is granted. Ferry has a relationship with Budenholzer having worked for the organization on two separate occasions, including as assistant general manager before joining the Hawks.
Budenholzer has spent 18 seasons with the Spurs, two as the video coordinator, 16 as an assistant coach with the past five as the top assistant to Gregg Popovich.
“I think he’s evolved to the point he’d like to do it on his own and see what he can do,” Popovich told the paper. “So I think in the contacts he’s had this year, he’s more interested in following through and getting a job.”
Budenholzer is also reportedly a candidate for the Pistons’ vacant head coach position.
