Hawks CEO Steve Koonin said there is "significant interest" among potential buyers of the franchise, but noted it is a "process and it is a very expensive purchase." Koonin appeared on NBA TV's "NBA Game Time" Monday night and said, "If I put a timeline on it, I would be fabricating because I don't know and nobody knows." Turner Sports’ David Aldridge referenced the Hawks' 37-8 start to the season and said to Koonin, “While this is unbelievably great and fun, at some point you want to know who the boss is?” Koonin responded, “Why? The truth of the matter is that we weren’t on a time clock. This wasn’t a (Donald) Sterling, where a deadline would happen. So it’s an orderly process." He did say he believes the fate of President of Basketball Operations & GM Danny Ferry, who has been on an indefinite leave of absence since September, will be resolved by the new ownership group since “it’s such a big, important, strategic issue.” During the controversy that engulfed the franchise last summer, Koonin said he told his players to “listen to your heart." Koonin: "If you want to speak, speak. If you want to be quiet, be quiet.” He went on to say that small changes were made to the team’s travel and “family room” to express to the players that the front office does “care deeply” about them.
PEER ONE IMPORTS: Koonin said the franchise sees the Warriors as an "aspirational team" that the Hawks strive to emulate. He said, "They play in an older arena. They play in a tough location to get to with traffic in Oakland. They don’t have a 27-title history like the Lakers or the Celtics, but yet they have 14,500 season-ticket holders and 5,000 on the waiting list. ... They’re also incredibly digitally savvy, and so we want to admire them, we want to steal a little from them and we want to learn from them." He added the Warriors' front office team of Peter Guber, Joe Lacob and Rick Welts is the "best in the business.” Meanwhile, the Hawks this season have drawn headlines for some unique marketing campaigns, including their Tinder Night earlier this month. Koonin said, "Sports should be fun again, and social media is the remote control to everyone’s life. ... We've embraced it and made it part of the lifestyle." He added, "We know who we’re aiming at. We’re talking to young millennials. Atlanta is a unique city; it’s a melting pot. ... All these kids who are born here, there’s a next generation. There’s 2.1 million people 18-40 in Atlanta; that’s who we are talking to. That’s who we’re going after because it’s their team. We’re not going to change your dad, but we got a real good shot to change you" ("NBA Game Time," NBA TV, 1/26).
