Details Are Emerging On Why Nate McMillan Was Fired

The Atlanta Hawks have officially let go of coach Nate McMillan.

McMillan — who went 99-80 in three seasons in charge of the team — was reportedly on the hot seat since the start of the season, so this wasn’t exactly surprising.

He reportedly feuded with franchise star Trae Young, who even refused to show up for a game due to this altercation.

Now, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, it seems like McMillan had actually asked to step down multiple times over the past couple of weeks:

“In the weeks to come, I’m told Nate McMillan multiple times requested and asked to step down as head coach of the Hawks,” Charania told Bally Sports.

"In the weeks to come, I'm told Nate McMillan multiple times requested and asked to step down as head coach of the Hawks"@shamscharania on what led to the Atlanta Hawks firing Nate McMillan on Tuesday.

🎥 @TheRally pic.twitter.com/BL3jEVBbzh

— Bally Sports (@BallySports) February 22, 2023

This isn’t the first time that a report has surfaced of McMillan’s desire to leave the team.

There have been multiple reports blaming Trae Young’s lack of accountability and reportedly high-maintenance personality as the main factors behind the Hawks’ lack of success.

The Hawks were expected to be a driving force and dark horse candidate in the Eastern Conference upon Dejounte Murray’s arrival, yet they’re 29-30 and just three games above the final spot in the Play-in tournament.

Moreover, there were also several reports about Young wanting to leave the team in the offseason, so chances are that the team decided to keep their young star happy by letting the coach go.

Per Charania, the team will start looking for a new coach immediately, with no shortage of candidates on their radar.

Still, it’s kind of odd to see that the team has fired a coach just a couple of days before the restart of the regular-season, so the situation between him and the players — namely Trae Young — may have become untenable over the past week or so.