The contract settlement of embattled Hawks general manager Danny Ferry was officially announced Monday. Ferry broke his silence after a nearly year-long leave of absence and answered questions from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Here is the complete transcript of the interview.
Q: We reported that the Bernard Taylor investigation cleared you of any racial animus regarding your remarks about Luol Deng. Do you feel vindicated?
A: That's not really for me to say. But I do feel relieved. I've been asking the Hawks for many months to release the results of the Taylor investigation because I wanted everyone to have those facts. For whatever reason, the team refused to release the results until after the season ended. The Taylor investigation included 19 interviews of Hawks owners and employees, and a review of 24,000 emails — including every one I wrote and received as general manager. Both the Taylor investigation and a parallel but independent investigation by the NBA found no negative information about me and not a single incident where I exhibited racial bias during my tenure. Now, does that make my comments about Luol OK? Absolutely not. The words I used from the scouting report came out of my mouth and they were totally inappropriate. I am deeply sorry and take full responsibility.
Q: Why do you think it took the Hawks so long to release the report?
A: I have no idea. That's not a question I can answer.
Q: If the Taylor investigation cleared your name, then why are you leaving as Hawks general manager?
A: I was told I needed to settle my contract with the current ownership group before the team changed hands. This resolution is the best outcome for the new owners, for the Hawks and for me. It gives all of us flexibility moving forward.
Q: Why did you decide to take a leave of absence in the first place?
A: The team asked me to take a leave in September. I agreed to do so because, at the time, emotions were running very high externally and even more so internally because of the ownership dispute. As time went on, the Hawks asked me to remain on the sidelines until the team was sold. I had no idea it would take as long as it did. I wanted the focus to be on the team and the players. If that meant I had to stay in the background until the team was willing to release the results of the Taylor investigation, then that is what I had to do.
Q: Was the scouting report on Luol Deng a team-generated document? Did you see those comments prior to the conference call? Who is responsible for putting those comments in the report?
A: The statement came from a third-party scouting document. I made the mistake of using it on a conference call with the owners. I am fully responsible. Clearly, I made a mistake to repeat the stereotypes. They were not consistent with my observations of Luol. He is a really good man and I said so on the call. We both played at Duke and, in fact, I took Bud (coach Mike Budenholzer) to Duke so that Coach K (Mike Krzyzewski) could help persuade Bud to make an offer to Luol. I think very highly of Luol and I strongly supported signing him. That was clearly stated on the conference call and many other times.
Q: Tell us what happened right after all this broke.
A: After the 20-second audio recording of the conference call was leaked to the media in September, my first thought was to apologize to Luol. This had to be hurtful to him. I can't say it enough: Luol is a good man and he didn't deserve to be dragged into the Hawks' mess. He is the real victim in all of this. I also apologized to Masai Ujiri, Dikembe Mutombo, Amadou Gallo Fall and others who have used the NBA as a platform to help so many people in Africa.
Q: What else did you do for nearly a year while on leave?
A: I met privately with civil rights, community and business leaders to engage in thoughtful conversation. I met some great people along the way who I hope will remain friends for a long time. I also spent time at local universities talking with sociology, psychology and leadership classes. I traveled to Senegal in December to participate in the NBA's Live, Learn and Play program, which uses basketball as a tool to help young people across Africa. And I spent a lot of time — quality time — with my wife and five children. That has been great. I worried about how my kids were going to handle this and be treated at school based on all of the negative media. These past several months have been very difficult and humbling and I have worked hard to make something good come of it.
Q: What has been the most difficult part of this for you?
A: The conversations with Luol and Amadou — and, of course, talking to my wife and five children. Those were hard conversations to have. Also, after the controversy hit, Hawks management, lawyers and their crisis PR group said that although this was an unfair situation, they pressured me to quit. They didn't see a way I could survive this. That was hard to take. Fortunately, Wayne Embry, the Rev. Toussaint Hill, Lance Blanks and others were telling me, "You can't quit. If you quit now, you're admitting you are a racist and you are not a racist." Those are people who have experienced racism. My father also was a good voice for me through all of this. I am glad I followed their advice and I am so grateful for the support from them and many others.
Q: What have you learned from all this?
A: First and foremost, I learned how gracious and forgiving people can be, especially Luol, who had every right to be angry and hurt. I was surprised and very happy that during our conversation, he suggested that we work on a project together this summer. He was very clear that he wanted this to lead to something positive. He was incredible and I am really looking forward to working with him.
Q: Any other lessons?
A: In my meetings with Magic Johnson, the Rev. Toussaint Hill, Dr. Lawrence Carter at Morehouse, Jonathan Walton at Harvard University and others, they were very clear about the need to confront stereotypes and the damage they cause in society. Too many people use stereotypes and it is counterproductive. I should have been more sensitive to this, especially since both in Cleveland and Atlanta, I have been the leader of diverse organizations in a league that thrives on and celebrates diversity in so many ways.
Q: Are you surprised at the Hawks' success this season? How much satisfaction do you take in knowing you assembled this team?
A: I'm impressed and proud. We went through a lot of changes in the past couple years. Moving people in and out and changing culture in a substantive way is hard. But change was necessary. Now, the selfless style of play, the team-first mentality and the defense is exactly what we had in mind when we assembled our coaching staff and roster. I miss the group, particularly our players. These are people I like and respect a lot. My management philosophy has always been to recruit really good people, to hire people smarter than me and then get out of the way. Well, I guess I'm doing that right now.
Q: But it must have been killing you watching this from the outside. How difficult was that for you?
A: I was excited to see our team's success and the way they played. It certainly would have been a lot tougher if we were losing. The way they played unselfish basketball, it was wonderful to see. And let's be realistic. Even with everything that's happened, I am extremely blessed.
Q: Did you consider talking to new ownership about staying on?
A: I think the new owners should be able to shape the organization as they see fit. I wish Tony Ressler, Grant Hill and the other new owners the best of luck. I know how important it is for our fan base to have a unified ownership group leading the organization.
Q: What's next for Danny Ferry?
A: I love the game of basketball. I have been involved in the sport since I was a kid and have been fortunate to receive so much from the game. I want to continue to be involved in basketball but the decisions ahead will be family decisions and not just about what I want to do.
