Duke Basketball Faces From Long Ago Reuniting With Hawks

After stepping down as the Notre Dame head coach in March, former Duke basketball assistant (1987-95) Mike Brey has found a new future home with an Atlanta Hawks franchise now chock-full of former Blue Devils.

On Monday night, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski tweeted that the 64-year-old Brey plans to join the staff of first-year Hawks head coach and former Duke basketball point guard (1985-89) Quin Snyder next season.

They haven't decided on Brey's exact role yet.

As @tnoieNDI reported, former Notre Dame coach Mike Brey will join Atlanta coach Quin Snyder’s staff next year. No specific role has been finalized, nor will until after this season, sources tell ESPN. Brey, who has a 30-year history with Snyder, visited with the Hawks in March.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) April 18, 2023

In Brey's first two seasons with the Blue Devils, he coached Snyder, coinciding with Final Four trips in 1988 and 1989. And in Brey's last few years as a Duke assistant, Snyder was a graduate assistant.

Then Snyder became a full-time assistant under Mike Krzyzewski in 1995 when Brey became head coach at Delaware, where Brey remained until taking over at Notre Dame in 2000.

Furthermore, Brey was an assistant in Durham for all four of Blue Devil legend Grant Hill's seasons in Durham, including their back-to-back national championships together in 1991 and 1992. Why is that noteworthy? Since 2015, Hill has been a co-owner of the Hawks.

Finally, note that the current group of Hawks, who hope to tie their first-round playoff series on the road against the Boston Celtics in Game 2 at 7 p.m. ET Tuesday, includes a pair of recent one-and-done Blue Devils in AJ Griffin and Jalen Johnson.

Yes, former Duke basketball talents and coaches are abundant in Atlanta.

Stay tuned to Blue Devil Country for daily Duke basketball content.