Hawks Keep Stotts, Knight

General Manager Billy Knight and Coach Terry Stotts will run the Atlanta Hawks next season as ownership of the NBA team remains in limbo after more than three months of negotiations.

Although other teams have hired and fired coaches and executives this summer, the Hawks didn’t make any moves while waiting for the proposed sale of the team from AOL Time Warner to Dallas auto tycoon David McDavid.

The negotiations are dragging, so the team decided to retain Knight and Stotts, who were initially hired on an interim basis.

McDavid also is negotiating to buy the NHL’s Atlanta Thrashers and operating control of Philips Arena in Atlanta.

Hawk President Stan Kasten told a news conference Monday that the negotiations played a role in the delay of hiring a permanent coach and general manager.

“As we sit here today, that has not concluded,” Kasten said. He refused to discuss the negotiations.

Knight and Stotts each received a two-year contract. Financial details were not released.

Stotts was made interim coach of the Hawks on Dec. 26, when Lon Kruger was fired. The team had a 24-31 record after the change and did not qualify for the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season.

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Former Laker and Clipper Larry Drew was hired as an assistant by the New Jersey Nets.

Drew has been an assistant in the NBA for 10 seasons, the last three with the Washington Wizards.

He played 10 seasons in the league, and his most productive season was in 1982-83, when he averaged 20.1 points, 8.1 assists and 1.7 steals for the Kansas City Kings.