The Atlanta Hawks have finalized Head Coach Quin Snyder's coaching staff for the 2026-27 season, adding three experienced names to the organization. The new hires are Jason Love as an assistant coach, European legend Ettore Messina as a coaching consultant, and Sergi Oliva as a basketball strategy and development advisor.
Jason Love joins the Hawks after two seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks as an assistant coach focused on player development. Before that, he spent five years with the Philadelphia 76ers, climbing from a player development associate in 2019 to an assistant coach by 2023. Love played college basketball at Xavier University, where he set the program's all-time wins record with 108, and had a seven-year professional career overseas.
Ettore Messina is one of the most decorated coaches in European basketball history. He won four EuroLeague championships with Virtus Bologna and CSKA Moscow and claimed multiple Italian and Russian league titles. Messina also coached the Italian national team to a EuroBasket silver medal in 1997. He has previous NBA experience as a consultant with the Los Angeles Lakers and as an assistant coach under Gregg Popovich with the San Antonio Spurs from 2014 to 2019. Messina is a FIBA Hall of Fame member and previously worked with Quin Snyder in Moscow.
Sergi Oliva most recently spent four seasons as the Portland Trail Blazers' assistant general manager. He also served as head coach of the NBA G League's Rip City Remix in the 2024-25 season. Oliva has a prior connection to Snyder, having worked as an assistant coach for the Utah Jazz from 2020 to 2022. His background includes six years with the Philadelphia 76ers in a front-office strategy role and over a decade of coaching at youth and amateur levels in Spain. He holds a Ph.D. In Computational Complexity.
This significant investment in Snyder's staff signals the Hawks' commitment to building a deep and knowledgeable support system. The blend of experiences is notable. Messina provides elite-level tactical knowledge from decades at the top of European basketball. Oliva offers a unique mix of coaching, analytics, and front-office strategy. Love brings a fresh, player-development focused perspective from recent tenures with contending teams.
For Quin Snyder, it reunites him with two trusted colleagues. He served as an assistant under Messina at CSKA Moscow, and Oliva worked on his staff in Utah. This existing rapport should allow for quicker integration and a more cohesive vision for player development and game planning. The Hawks are clearly aiming to create an environment that maximizes their roster's potential.
The coaching news arrives as the team processes a challenging recent stretch.
This inconsistency highlights the areas where the new coaching staff will need to focus: defensive solidity and sustaining performance.
The additions of Love, Messina, and Oliva represent a clear statement of intent from the Atlanta Hawks front office. They are surrounding their core players and head coach with a wealth of experience and diverse basketball intellect. While the immediate focus might be on analyzing the late-season losses, the long-term goal is building a foundation for sustained success. The integration of these coaches during the offseason will be a key storyline to watch as the Hawks prepare for the 2026-27 campaign.
