Hawks, Thrashers president Mullin resigns

ATLANTA -- Bernie Mullin has resigned as president of the Atlanta Hawks and Atlanta Thrashers, and one of the teams' owners said there is no plan to name a replacement.

Michael Gearon Jr., an Atlanta-based member of the ownership group, said Mullin's resignation on Tuesday will set up a more efficient management of the teams.

``As far as the transition goes, it's seamless,'' Gearon told The Associated Press. ``There's no impact at all to the operations. ... We're not going to hire a new CEO.''

Gearon said the ``mutual decision'' for Mullin and chief financial officer Bill Duffy to resign ``has nothing to do with the teams'' but was a result of the ownership group's active role in the operations of the teams.

``We've gotten to know the management team very well and we're very comfortable with them and we don't need somebody between them and us,'' Gearon said. ``There's no negative feelings on either side.''

Mullin had been president and chief executive officer of Atlanta Spirit, representing the ownership group for the NBA's Hawks, the NHL's Thrashers and Philips Arena, since 2004.

``I'm leaving to pursue other opportunities,'' Mullin said. ``I will always cherish my time with the Atlanta Spirit and I'm proud to have helped put into place what I believe will be one of the most successful organizations in professional sports.

``Both teams are in a position to be perennial playoff contenders and I will particularly look back with pride knowing that Philips Arena is now one of the top three revenue generating arenas in the world.''

Executives who have reported directly to Mullin now instead will report to the owners, including Gearon, who will be the point man for the Hawks. Gearon already serves as the team's NBA governor, the member of the group who must sign off on all trades.

Gearon said he will have continued contact with Mullin during a transition period.

``I have the utmost respect for Bernie Mullin,'' Gearon said. ``I still consider him a friend and he will continue to be welcome in the arena and there is a transition period where he will continue to have a dialogue with ownership.''

Though Gearon referred to a transition period, he also said no real transition was necessary.

Gearon said Hawks general manager Billy Knight, Thrashers general manager and interim coach Don Waddell, executive vice president for sales and marketing Lou DePaoli, chief legal officer Scott Wilkinson and Philips Arena president Bob Williams all already report to owners.

``Frankly, when we first hired Bernie there was an expectation everybody would report to Bernie and Bernie would report to the board,'' Gearon said. ``It never turned out the way originally envisioned.''

When asked about Duffy's resignation, Gearon said ``We don't need a CFO.

``We leave player and team stuff to our GMs. As far as business stuff, it is something we've all done and done well. It was a decision to go with a different structure.''

The moves come as the Thrashers are preparing to host the NHL All-Star game on Sunday.