Hawks, coach still plan to talk

Associated Press

ATLANTA

Hawks coach Mike Woodson said Tuesday there have been no talks on a new contract with Atlanta, even amid reports that he’ll be a candidate to take another job after the season.

The most persistent report is that Woodson could wind up as Philadelphia’s coach, which is based on Larry Brown leaving Charlotte to become the 76ers’ general manager. Brown has denied that he’s planning to leave the Bobcats.

Woodson, who worked as an assistant to Brown in Detroit, said he wants to remain with the Hawks.

He took over a rebuilding team six years ago and went 13-69, but Atlanta has shown improvement every year since then. The Hawks are tied with Milwaukee heading into Game 5 tonight.

“They’re out there,” Woodson said, referring to the reports about his future. “But again, my job is right here with the Hawks. I started this gig six years ago and I want to finish it.”

The Hawks stuck with Woodson through the difficult early years, giving him a two-year contract extension in 2008 shortly after general manager Rick Sund came aboard, even though his record at the time was only 106-222.

Atlanta posted winning records the last two years, going a combined 100-62. The Hawks reached the second round of the playoffs in 2009 and they were the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference this year, winning 53 games.