Two months ago, when it appeared the Hawks were on a solid path to the playoffs and Nate McMillan was on a solid path to affirming he was the right coach for this team, he recounted that first conversation he had with players after replacing the fired Lloyd Pierce.
“’You need to do better,’” McMillan recalled telling his players to The Athletic. “Because Lloyd took the hit for all of us. I know that goes with the territory (of being a coach). But you need to look at yourself and see what you’re going to do about that.”
What followed was a transformation nobody could have seen coming, certainly not to this degree. Not McMillan, who said he was merely focused on building a culture and building trust.
