Atlanta Hawks GM Danny Ferry goes on indefinite leave over remarks

Atlanta Hawks General Manager Danny Ferry was granted an indefinite leave of absence Friday amid calls for his dismissal over racially insensitive remarks about a free agent his team was interested in.

Hawks Chief Executive Steve Koonin said Ferry requested the time away from his duties.

Ferry said he would work to rebuild trust with the Atlanta community and Hawks fans, meeting with community leaders to further educate himself on issues involving race, diversity and inclusion.

Koonin said the team was working with a diversity consultant “to train us to ensure something like this never happens again” and would hire a chief diversity officer.

Ferry made his comments about forward Luol Deng on a conference call with team owners in June, saying Deng has “got some African in him” and later describing Deng as a “two-faced liar and cheat.”

Ferry said he was repeating comments from a scouting report, a claim that was bolstered when the Atlanta Journal-Constitution obtained a document with phrasing similar to that used by the Hawks executive on the call.

This week, Koonin levied an undisclosed punishment against Ferry for his remarks. Hawks Coach Mike Budenholzer will assume Ferry’s duties in his absence.

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said he did not think Ferry should lose his job, but Lakers legend Magic Johnson tweeted that Ferry should step down.

Ferry released a statement saying “no words can adequately describe my remorse for the hurt that I have caused many people through the statements I repeated, most importantly Luol Deng.”

Ferry reiterated the words he used on the conference call were not his but acknowledged “I deeply regret repeating them. Almost all the background information I provided during the lengthy presentation regarding Luol was positive and my personal and professional recommendation during the call was very much in favor of adding Luol to our team, but I never should have uttered those offensive remarks and for that I apologize.”

Deng signed a two-year contract with the Miami Heat in July. One of his former teammates, Kyle Korver, told the Journal-Constitution that Deng did not believe Ferry or the Hawks organization was racist.

“He said he was shocked when he heard what was said,” Korver told the newspaper, relaying a conversation with Deng, “but that sometimes things just slip out. It was pretty amazing, really. He just wants everything to move on. He wants to get back to basketball.”

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