Handshake agreements in place for Budenholzer, Wilcox promotions
Grant Hill said it first in a reference to Mike Budenholzer.
“President Bud,” Hill, part of new Hawks ownership, said of the team’s head coach at an introductory news conference Thursday at Philips Arena.
Principal owner Tony Ressler confirmed the new ownership group is very close to new titles for Budenholzer and assistant general manager Wes Wilcox.
“We’ve only been owners for 24 hours, however in those 24 hours it’s fair to say that we have a handshake agreement with Bud to be our head coach and president of basketball operation with Wes Wilcox to be our general manager,” Ressler said. “For what it’s worth, to have Wes, to have Bud, to have (CEO) Steve (Koonin) in place couldn’t be a more exciting proposition from our prospective as the new ownership.”
The promotions of Budenholzer and Wilcox were reported earlier this month, before the new ownership took on control of the franchise. Budenholzer was in charge of basketball operations last season with then-general manager Danny Ferry on leave of absence. He will become the fifth coach in the NBA to also hold the title of president.
About the Author
Chris Vivlamore is the sports editor at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He has served as reporter and editor at the AJC since 2003.
