Hawks stonewalled 76ers’ attempts to steal away GM

The Philadelphia 76ers are still in search of a team president after firing Daryl Morey, and one of the candidates they were interested in won’t be getting poached from his current organization. Bob Myers was reportedly interested in Atlanta Hawks general manager Onsi Saleh, but he was denied permission to interview him, according to Tony Jones of The Athletic.

“Myers attempted to interview Atlanta Hawks general manager Onsi Saleh, according to league sources. But the Hawks, last Thursday, denied the Sixers permission for the interview,” Jones wrote.

Saleh and Myers go back to their days with the Golden State Warriors. Since then, Saleh has found success with the Hawks, and this past year, he finished second in Executive of the Year voting.

Last offseason, the Hawks signed Nickeil Alexander-Walker in free agency, and he turned out to be the Most Improved Player of the league. Saleh also made a huge draft-day deal last year, trading their No. 13 pick to the New Orleans Pelicans for their No. 23 pick and 2026 first-round pick. That 2026 pick turned out to be the No. 8 pick, and they have a chance to add to their young core.

There’s no surprise that Myers wanted to bring Saleh along so he could help fix the 76ers, but it looks like he’ll have to go searching elsewhere.

Whoever takes on the role for the 76ers will have a lot of talent on their hands, but they’ll also have some decisions to make. Joel Embiid’s health has been a major concern over the past few years, and with the contract that he’s on, it’s hard to see if he’s going to be a part of the future.

The two players who definitely have a spot on this team moving forward are Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe, who showed signs of being a strong backcourt.