Hawks GM Danny Ferry Takes Leave of Absence

Published at 12:34 am, September 13, 2014

EastIdahoNews.com Staff

Christian Petersen/Getty Images(ATLANTA) — Atlanta Hawks general manager, Danny Ferry, took an indefinite leave of absence Friday.

Ferry recently came under fire for his racial comments about current Miami Heat forward Luol Deng.

Ferry made the comments during a conference call with the Hawks ownership group in June. The Hawks were interested in signing Deng, and Ferry was reading off a scouting report written by somebody else.

Ferry released a statement regarding the situation:

“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.

“Luol is a good man who I have known for many years and he has done a tremendous amount of good for his country and around the world. I apologize to Luol and I apologize to all that I have offended. As I have said, while these were not my words, 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.”

There was pressure for Ferry to be fired, but Hawks CEO Steve Koonin refused, instead asking for Ferry to take a leave of absence.

“My hope that this time away from the Hawks organization allows him the privacy he needs to listen to the community, to learn about his mistakes, and to begin the long process of personal healing,” Koonin said in a statement.

Ferry also stated he plans to undergo sensitivity training.

SUBMIT A CORRECTION