The Atlanta Hawks have fired Lloyd Pierce as their coach.
“We would like to thank Lloyd for his work and commitment to not only the Hawks organization but the city of Atlanta. He and his wife, Melissa, are tremendous people who have made a positive impact throughout the city,” Hawks president of basketball operations/general manager Travis Schlenk said in a statement. “We have high expectations for our team on the court and we believe by making this change now that we can have a strong second half of the season.”
The Hawks are hopeful assistant Nate McMillan will choose to become the interim head coach, sources told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. McMillan is meeting with Pierce and the rest of the Hawks’ coaching staff now, sources said. McMillan has been fiercely loyal in his support of Pierce.
Pierce was hired ahead of the 2018-19 season and compiled a 63-120 record in two-plus seasons with the Hawks.
Atlanta is in 11th place in the Eastern Conference with a 14-20 mark and next plays Tuesday night in Miami. The Hawks began the season 10-9, but have lost 11 of their last 15 games.
