Atlanta Hawks minority owner Michael Gearon Jr. wrote a letter to Bruce Levenson in June asking for the resignation of GM and president of basketball operations Danny Ferry following comments he made about perspective free agent Luol Deng. Gearon's letter has been uncovered by WSB-TV in Atlanta and details Ferry's insensitive remarks about Deng, a native of Sudan.
Hawks minority owner wanted Danny Ferry fired, according to report
Danny Ferry would not have been retained as the GM of the Hawks if minority owner Michael Gearon Jr. had his way.
Daniel Shirey-USA TODAY Sports
Ricky O'Donnell has covered basketball at all levels for more than a decade at SB Nation. He’s currently the Associate Director of Programming.
On the subject of Deng, Ferry said “he has a little African in him, not in a bad way, but he’s a guy who would have a nice store out front, but sell you counterfeit stuff out of the back.”
Gearon’s letter continues “Ferry completed the racial slur by describing the player (and impliedly, all persons of African descent) as a two-faced liar and cheat.”
Ferry reportedly received an undisclosed punishment from the team, according to Adrian Wojnarowski, but remained as the team’s GM.
Gearon’s letter started an investigation that yielded a racially-insensitive email Levenson sent in 2012 discussing the demographics of the Hawks’ attendance. After the details of the email emerged, Levenson was pressured into selling his share of the franchise, which he has agreed to do.
Atlanta has reportedly already fielded multiple phone calls from people interested in buying a stake in the team. Deng signed with the Miami Heat in July.
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