The Atlanta Hawks are enlisting the services of a Filipino coach for the 2024 NBA Summer League, which will be held in Las Vegas next month.
The Hawks have hired Ariel Vanguardia to coach the ten-day tournament, which will be held from July 12 to 22 at the Cox Pavilion and the Thomas and Mack Center.
The 51-year-old former Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) coach will travel to the United States as early as July 5 to meet with the rest of the Hawks coaching staff and the roster, according to Filipino journalist Homer Sayson.
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Notably, Vanguardia has been without a head coaching job for more than a year after departing from the PBA Blackwater Elite in April 2023, following two years at the helm on an interim basis.
Filipino coaches in the NBA Summer League
Vanguardia will be the second Filipino coach in recent years to be given an opportunity to work in the NBA Summer League.
The first one to do so was PBA legend Jimmy Alapag, who currently serves as a player development coach for the Sacramento Kings.
The 46-year-old first got his foot in the door for an NBA opportunity with the Kings as an assistant during the 2019 Summer League, shortly after ending a highly decorated playing career in the PBA and the Gilas Pilipinas national team.
Tim Cone, an American who is the current head coach of PBA's Barangay Ginebra San Miguel and the most successful coach in PBA history with 25 championships, also had a stint in the Summer League as an assistant coach for the Miami Heat in 2022.
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