- Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press looks at how new Pistons general manager Troy Weaver could avoid failure by examining some of the franchise’s past mistakes. Weaver, who most recently served as vice president of basketball operations with the Thunder, was hired by Detroit last week. The Pistons accrued just a 20-46 record on the season and have reached the playoffs just twice in the past ten years.
Having created a space to track the NBA’s head coaching changes this year, we’re now doing the same for the teams shaking up their front offices.
The front office structure for an NBA franchise generally isn’t as cut-and-dried as a coaching staff. All 30 teams will enter the 2020/21 season employing a head coach and a staff of assistant coaches. But not every team will have an executive with the title of “president of basketball operations” or “executive VP of basketball operations” on its payroll. And while some general managers around the league have decision-making power within their organizations, that doesn’t apply to all of them.
Nonetheless, we’ll do our best to track this offseason’s front office changes in the space below, monitoring which executives have decision-making power in each new management group. Some of these searches could extend well into the summer or fall, so be sure to check back for the latest updates.
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Updated 10-24-20 (1:43pm CT)
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Chicago Bulls
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Some combination of Paxson and/or Forman had been running the show in Chicago since Jerry Krause‘s departure in 2003, so when the Bulls overhauled their front office this spring, there was skepticism among fans that the duo known as GarPax would really be stripped of its power.
Paxson remained in the organization and may be involved in some basketball decisions, but Forman is gone, and by all accounts, the Bulls are prepared to give the reins to Karnisovas and his new right-hand man Eversley. One of their first orders of business will be making a decision on head coach Jim Boylen, who is very much on the hot seat.
Denver Nuggets
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- General manager Arturas Karnisovas left for job with Bulls (story)
The Nuggets had to replace Karnisovas once he decided to take the top job in Chicago, but didn’t technically conduct a full-fledged search for his replacement, opting instead to stay in-house and promote Booth. He’ll be the new top lieutenant in Denver for president of basketball operations Tim Connelly.
Detroit Pistons
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Senior advisor Ed Stefanski has served as the Pistons’ de facto head of basketball operations for the last two years, but at the time of his hiring, he wasn’t necessarily viewed as someone who would hold that position for the next five or 10 years.
With its hiring of Weaver, Detroit has brought aboard a GM who will work with Stefanski and “run the basketball side of things,” according to team owner Tom Gores. While Stefanski, vice chairman Arn Tellem, and head coach Dwane Casey figure to be involved to some extent in basketball decisions, it sounds as if Weaver will take the lead on those matters.
It’s worth noting that the Pistons are expected to hire a couple new assistant GMs, so while their GM search is finished, their front office additions likely aren’t.
Houston Rockets
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- Rafael Stone, general manager (story)
- Note: Promoted from executive VP of basketball operations
- Rafael Stone, general manager (story)
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After losing McNair to the Kings, the Rockets saw their longtime head of basketball operations exit the organization, as Morey resigned from his GM position.
Rather than launching a full-fledged search for a new general manager, the Rockets promoted Stone, a longtime Morey lieutenant who will take control of the team’s basketball operations department. Assistant GM Eli Witus will take on additional responsibilities as Stone’s new right-hand man.
New York Knicks
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- Leon Rose, president of basketball operations (story)
- William Wesley, executive VP/senior basketball advisor (story)
- Frank Zanin, assistant general manager – pro scouting (story)
- Walt Perrin, assistant general manager – college scouting (story)
- Brock Aller, VP of basketball and strategic planning (story)
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- Retained:
- Scott Perry, general manager (story)
The Knicks made their changes in the winter, firing Mills during the first week of February and officially bringing Rose aboard less than a month later. Still, we’re including them here because the work they’ve done reshaping their front office has extended into the offseason, with the hiring of Zanin, Perrin, and Aller.
Following the Knicks’ surprising decision to extend Perry’s contract by one year, the next items on the docket include hiring a permanent head coach and deciding how to use their cap room once free agency begins.
Sacramento Kings
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Although Divac’s departure was classified as him “stepping down” from his general manager position with the Kings, subsequent reporting suggested that team owner Vivek Ranadive wanted him to accept a reduced role, with Dumars taking on more power in Sacramento’s front office.
Dumars briefly took the reins as the Kings’ interim executive VP of basketball operations and general manager, and was involved in the search for a new permanent GM, but transitioned to a chief strategy officer position once Sacramento landed on Rockets assistant GM McNair as its new head of basketball operations.
The Pistons‘ long pursuit of Troy Weaver finally paid off Thursday when he was hired to be the team’s general manager, writes Rod Beard of The Detroit News. A league source tells Beard that Detroit had strong interest in Weaver when team president/coach Stan Van Gundy and GM Jeff Bower were dismissed two years ago, but the Thunder wouldn’t grant permission for an interview.
Weaver, 52, spent more than a decade in the Oklahoma City front office and was instrumental in building a team that reached the NBA Finals. He was an advocate for drafting Russell Westbrook with the fourth pick in 2008, even though he wasn’t projected that high. Pistons vice chairman Arn Tellem previously worked with Wasserman Media Group, which represented Westbrook.
“We’re rebuilding our roster and Troy brings a tremendous amount of experience. He’s one of those guys who has a knack for talent,” Pistons coach Dwane Casey said in an NBA-TV interview. “A lot of the growth and building they did in Oklahoma City Thunder, he was a big part of that. … The next couple of years of developing our roster is a key time in our organization.”
There’s more from Detroit:
- In addition to Tellem and Casey, Weaver spoke with senior adviser Ed Stefanski, owner Tom Gores and the Pistons’ assistant general managers during the interview process so the organization could get a “fully rounded view,” according to James L. Edwards III of The Athletic. Weaver will be given free rein to hire more assistant GMs and support staff. Sources tell Edwards that Nets assistant GM Jeff Peterson and Clippers assistant GM Mark Hughes were both impressive in their interviews and received serious consideration for the job.
- Re-signing Christian Wood should be Weaver’s top priority, states Ansar Khan of MLive. Wood will be an unrestricted free agent after a breakout performance over the last month of the season, but faces a market limited by financial uncertainty and a shortage of teams with cap space. Detroit owns Wood’s early Bird rights and can start his new deal at a little more than the non-taxpayer mid-level exception, which is expected to be about $9.7MM. The Celtics and Rockets both expressed interest in Wood at the trade deadline, Khan adds.
- Weaver also faces an important decision on Blake Griffin, who still has two years and approximately $75.6MM left on his contract, writes Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit News. Griffin was limited to 18 games this season because of a knee injury and at age 31, he doesn’t fit the team’s rebuilding timeline. Sankofa notes that Weaver was part of two franchise-altering trades last summer involving Paul George and Westbrook.
The Pistons have officially hired Thunder executive Troy Weaver as their new general manager, announcing the move today in a press release.
The club confirmed in the announcement that Weaver will be formally introduced in a video press conference next week. Meanwhile, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who first reported that the two sides were finalizing an agreement, says that Weaver’s deal will be for four years (Twitter links).
“Troy is an outstanding executive with an exceptional track record for identifying and developing talent,” team owner Tom Gores said in a statement. “In talking with Troy, he’s got both the skill and temperament to lead, and the confidence and creativity to work collaboratively with others. We’re excited for him to take the reins as General Manager of the Pistons at this important moment. Ed and the team have done excellent work creating flexibility with our roster and establishing a clear direction. Troy comes aboard to help take us to the next level.”
Weaver, who had been with the Thunder for more than a decade following a stint with the Jazz, most recently held the title of vice president of basketball operations after previously serving as the team’s VP/assistant GM. He was Sam Presti‘s top lieutenant in Oklahoma City and had been a candidate for other top basketball operations jobs around the NBA in recent years.
Weaver was reportedly in the running for the Wizards’ general manager opening a year ago before the team decided to remain in-house, promoting Tommy Sheppard. Weaver also received interest from the Bulls this spring, but reportedly turned down a second interview because he had heard Chicago was zeroing in on Arturas Karnisovas.
We heard way back in May of 2018 that the Pistons were interested in pursuing Weaver, though nothing came of it at the time — the club instead hired Ed Stefanski as a senior advisor, making him the de facto head of basketball operations. Now, Weaver is on track to work alongside Stefanski in Detroit’s front office.
There has been speculation that Stefanski could eventually shift to a background role with the franchise, which could put Weaver in line to assume control of the basketball operations department. For now, the expectation is that Weaver will work closely with Stefanski and head coach Dwane Casey on personnel matters, with Stefanski retaining final say.
The Pistons’ GM search also saw the team seriously consider Clippers assistant GM Mark Hughes and Nets assistant GM Jeff Peterson, though Weaver was viewed as the organization’s top choice. His “strong history of personnel decisions” helped win him the job, according to Wojnarowski, who notes that Weaver becomes the fourth Thunder executive under Presti to leave Oklahoma City for a GM job with another club — Rich Cho, Rob Hennigan, and Michael Winger also did so.
Having recently lost assistant GM Malik Rose to the NBA’s league office, the Pistons may still make one or two more additions to their front office. Nets director of player personnel J.R. Holden and Warriors assistant GM Mike Dunleavy were rumored to be on the club’s radar for non-GM roles.
As the Pistons close in on a GM, they are also looking at Nets director of player personnel J.R. Holden and Warriors assistant GM Mike Dunleavy as potential front office additions, SNY’s Ian Begley tweets. Presumably, Detroit would consider Holden and Dunleavy as candidates as assistant GMs.
However, James Edwards III of The Athletic tweets that the Pistons plan to hire a GM first and allow that person to fill out the staff. Thunder executive Troy Weaver has reportedly emerged as the leading candidate in their GM search, though Clippers assistant GM Mark Hughes and Nets assistant GM Jeff Peterson are also in the mix.
- Pistons swingman Luke Kennard is confident the knee tendinitis that cut short his season is no longer an issue, as he told Keith Langlois of the team’s website. Kennard didn’t play after Christmas but was just about to return when the pandemic struck in March. The Pistons, who are not part of the league’s restart plan, may have to wait until December to play again. “I’m not really nervous about the time off,” Kennard said. “I know what I’m doing right now is going to allow me to stay healthy and get through a full season and be ready to go for all 82 games or whatever they decide.”
The NBA’s rookie scale, which determines how much first-round picks earn during their first four NBA seasons, also dictates how much the qualifying offers will be worth for those players when they reach restricted free agency after year four. However, the value of those qualifying offers can fluctuate depending on whether or not a player has met the “starter criteria.”
A player who is eligible for restricted free agency is considered to have met the starter criteria if he plays at least 2,000 minutes or starts 41 games in the season before he reaches free agency.
A player can also meet the criteria if he averages either of those marks in the two seasons prior to his restricted free agency. For instance, if a player started 50 games in 2018/19 and 32 in 2019/20, he’d meet the starter criteria, since his average number of starts over the last two seasons is 41.
A player’s ability or inability to meet the starter criteria can affect the value of the qualifying offer he receives as a restricted free agent, as follows:
- A top-14 pick who does not meet the starter criteria will receive a qualifying offer equal to the amount the 15th overall pick would receive if he signed for 120% of the rookie scale.
- A player picked between 10th and 30th who meets the criteria will receive a qualifying offer equal to the amount the ninth overall pick would receive if he signed for 120% of the rookie scale.
- A second-round pick or undrafted player who meets the criteria will receive a qualifying offer equal to the amount the 21st overall pick would receive if he signed for 100% of the rookie scale.
- For all other RFAs, the standard criteria determine the amounts of their qualifying offers.
Extending a qualifying offer to a player eligible for restricted free agency officially makes that player an RFA, ensuring that his team has the right of first refusal if he signs an offer sheet with another club. It also gives the player the option of signing that one-year QO.
Generally, the value of a restricted free agent’s qualifying offer isn’t hugely important, since very few RFAs accept those offers outright. There are exceptions though.
In 2017, for instance, both players who signed their one-year QOs – centers Alex Len and Nerlens Noel – failed to meet the starter criteria heading into restricted free agency, reducing the value of their QOs to approximately $4.2MM (from $6.4MM and $5.85MM, respectively). Had Len and Noel met the starter criteria and been eligible for those larger QOs, their free agencies could have played out differently.
Top-14 picks who failed to meet starter criteria:
With that in mind, let’s check in on how this year’s RFAs-to-be will be impacted by the starter criteria. Listed below are the former top-14 picks on track for restricted free agency who have not met the starter criteria. These players will be eligible for qualifying offers worth $4,642,800.
- Jakob Poeltl (Spurs)
- Thon Maker (Pistons)
- Denzel Valentine (Bulls)
As the Nos. 9, 10, and 14 picks in the 2016 draft, Poeltl, Maker, and Valentine won’t be hit particularly hard by falling short of the starter criteria. Their projected qualifying offers would have ranged from approximately $5.09MM to $4.7MM, respectively, so a dip to $4.64MM shouldn’t have a major impact on their respective free agencies. Of the three players, only Poeltl looks like a lock to even receive a QO.
The top-14 pick whose situation remains unclear:
Because of the unusual circumstances surrounding this season, the usual definition of the starter criteria becomes a little more complicated. For instance, if a player started 40 games, but his team’s season ended after 65 games, should he be credited with having met the starter criteria based on the fact that he was “on pace” to do so over a full 82-game season?
There’s only one player who technically didn’t meet the starter criteria but was on pace to do so: Bulls guard Kris Dunn. After starting 44 games in 2018/19, Dunn started 32 of Chicago’s games this year, for a total of 76 over the last two seasons. If his starts this season were prorated over a full 82 games, he would have met the starter criteria.
The NBA and NBPA have agreed to prorate the criteria for performance bonuses and incentives in player contracts — it would make sense for the same rules to apply to Dunn. However, as we discussed last week, the fourth-year guard had a knee injury that was expected to sideline him for the rest of the season before COVID-19 threw the schedule into disarray. The Bulls, who had control over Dunn’s ability to make the last six starts he needed, may push back against the idea that proration should allow him to surpass the starter-criteria threshold.
ESPN’s Bobby Marks tells Hoops Rumors that Dunn will likely be deemed to have met the starter criteria, in which case his qualifying offer will be worth $7,091,457. If that changes, the value of his QO would dip to $4,642,800.
First-round picks between 10-30 who met starter criteria:
Only one player falls into this group this season.
- Dario Saric (Suns)
Because Saric was a 12th overall pick and met the starter criteria with 50 starts this season, he’s eligible for a qualifying offer worth $5,087,871 instead of $4,791,213. No other players fit the bill this year — many of the best players drafted between Nos. 10 and 30 in 2016 have already been extended, while the others didn’t have major roles or are no longer on their rookie contracts.
Entering the season, Malik Beasley – who logged nearly 1,900 minutes in 2018/19 – looked like the strongest candidate to join Saric in this group. However, Beasley had an inconsistent role in the Nuggets’ rotation before being traded to the Timberwolves, and ended up making just 14 starts (all with Minnesota), with 1,209 total minutes played.
Second-round picks and UDFAs who met starter criteria:
No second-round picks or undrafted free agents eligible for restricted free agency met the starter criteria this season, which would have put them in line for a qualifying offer worth $3,126,948.
Actually, Bogdan Bogdanovic (Kings) technically qualified for this group, but because his initial NBA contract was more lucrative than most, his qualifying offer will be worth $10,661,733 based on other criteria, rendering the starter criteria irrelevant for him.
De’Anthony Melton, Kenrich Williams, Torrey Craig, and Jevon Carter were some of the other top candidates to meet the starter criteria among second-rounders and UDFAs, but none ultimately recorded more than 1,011 minutes (Melton) or 18 starts (Williams).
As a result, those players – and the rest of this year’s restricted free agents – won’t have their projected qualifying offers impacted by the starter criteria.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Salary information from Basketball Insiders used in the creation of this post.
Thunder executive Troy Weaver has emerged as the frontrunner for the Pistons‘ general manager opening, according to Marc Stein of The New York Times (via Twitter). Stein reports that the Pistons are “actively working” to complete a deal with Weaver, while Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports tweets that both sides want to make it happen.
Weaver, who has been with the Thunder for more than a decade following a stint with the Jazz, holds the title of vice president of basketball operations after previously serving as the team’s VP/assistant GM. He’s Sam Presti‘s top lieutenant in Oklahoma City and has been a candidate for other top basketball operations jobs around the NBA in recent years.
Weaver was reportedly in the running for the Wizards’ general manager opening a year ago before the team decided to remain in-house, promoting Tommy Sheppard. Weaver also received interest from the Bulls this spring, but reportedly turned down a second interview because he had heard Chicago was zeroing in on Arturas Karnisovas.
We heard way back in May of 2018 that the Pistons were interested in pursuing Weaver, though nothing came of it at the time — the club instead hired Ed Stefanski as a senior advisor, making him the de facto head of basketball operations. Now, Weaver may be on track to work alongside Stefanski in Detroit’s front office, and could even eventually supplant him if Stefanski shifts to a background role, as has been speculated.
However, no deal is done yet, and ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski suggests (via Twitter) that there are a couple other executives who are also considered serious candidates for the Pistons’ job. Wojnarowski identifies Clippers assistant GM Mark Hughes and Nets assistant GM Jeff Peterson as contenders for the GM vacancy, adding that conversations between the Pistons and their top candidates will continue this week.
Hughes, who was a candidate this spring for the Bulls’ GM job that was eventually filled by Marc Eversley, has been with the Clippers since 2017, having previously served as the Knicks’ director of player personnel. Peterson was an assistant GM for several years in Atlanta before being hired away from the Hawks by Brooklyn last May.
In light of the multiple reports suggesting that the Pistons would make it a priority to conduct a diverse GM search, it’s worth noting that Weaver, Hughes, and Peterson are all black.
The Spurs’ Jakob Poeltl and the Kings’ Harry Giles are two of the centers the Pistons could target in free agency, James Edwards III of The Athletic opines. Poeltl began his NBA career under Pistons coach Dwane Casey in Toronto and his agent, Michael Tellem, is the son of Pistons vice chairman Arn Tellem, Edwards notes. Giles, like Poeltl, has the ability to develop into a much greater force than he’s shown with his current club, Edwards adds.
- The 2019/20 season was a wash for Pistons star forward Blake Griffin due to knee and hamstring injuries. However, the oft-injured Griffin believes he has plenty left in the tank, as he told the Detroit Free Press’ Omari Sankofa II (Twitter link) and other media members. Griffin said he doesn’t see his current contract, which lasts through the 2021/22 season, as his last. He also doesn’t view himself as being in decline. Griffin said last month he’s fully recovered from knee surgery in early January.
As the Pistons continue their search for a new general manager, James L. Edwards III of The Athletic cites a high-ranking team source who says that prioritizing diversity during that process is considered “vital.”
As Edwards cautions, that doesn’t necessarily mean that Detroit’s next GM will be a person of color. However, it sounds as if the Pistons are casting a wide net as they consider candidates, and Edwards suggests he’d be “very, very surprised” if the team doesn’t hire a person of color to its front office this summer in some capacity, whether it’s as a GM, an assistant GM, or another position.
Here’s more on the Pistons:
- Within the mailbag linked above, Edwards says he thinks the Pistons may play it a little safer in the 2020 NBA draft after rolling the dice on 18-year-old Sekou Doumbouya a year ago. As Edwards points out, this year’s draft class isn’t considered particularly strong to begin with, and scouting has been a challenge due to the coronavirus pandemic. As such, it might be a good time for the club to take a player it’s confident will develop into a solid pro, even if that prospect doesn’t necessarily have superstar upside. Of course, Detroit’s draft strategy will hinge in large part on where the team ends up in the lottery.
- On an end-of-season conference call on Wednesday, Pistons head coach Dwane Casey said he thinks the team will look to acquire a starting point guard in the draft or free agency this offseason, per Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press (Twitter link). Derrick Rose remains under contract for one more year, but thrived primarily in a sixth-man role in 2019/20.
- As Sankofa relays in a full Free Press story, Casey also said on Wednesday’s call that he was encouraged by the growth of the Pistons’ young players this season. “We found Christian Wood, who had an excellent season with us when a lot of people had given up on him,” Casey said. “Svi Mykhailiuk, I thought he made great strides as far as his shooting ability and his development. And also Bruce Brown, I thought Bruce took strides. I don’t think that he’s a starting point guard in our league. I think he’s going to be an excellent backup for us for whoever we get in that situation. But this year’s development of him is really valuable.”
- We passed along a few more of Casey’s end-of-season comments on Wednesday evening.
The Pistons are one of eight teams not headed to Orlando, but their practice facility has been open for about a week and players are utilizing the space, Keith Langlois of NBA.com shares.
“We’ve had great participation,” Dwane Casey said. “But it’s one player, one coach, one basket. Each player has their own ball. Coach wears gloves. So it’s a very sterile situation. The weight training and the conditioning part is also very big and that’s what they’re doing, also. From a basketball standpoint, you can only do that so long before it gets stale.”
There have been rumblings that the NBA could afford the eight teams some form of competition before the start of the 2020/21 campaign and the Pistons love the opportunity to get back on the court with other clubs.
“I know there’s been conversations with the league as far as different options to get the group together to have some type of competition later in the summer – late July, August – so the league is very aware of it. I just think it puts us as a competitive disadvantage if we go from March 11 to Dec. 1 or whenever the season reconvenes,” Casey said.
“If it’s a mini-camp or a round-robin Summer League with four of the eight teams, (that) would be sufficient,” Casey added. “Different ideas have been put out there. Especially with a young team – and all of the eight teams are young teams – you can only drill one on one and try to get guys better from an individual standpoint (so much). The teams in Orlando have a competitive advantage by going against each other in a very competitive atmosphere and it really puts us behind the eight ball from a competitive standpoint.”
Prior to the Pistons’ opening their practice facility, the league granted the team several exceptions that allowed rehabbing players to use the facility. Derrick Rose and Luke Kennard were among those.
Blake Griffin underwent left knee surgery back in January and wasn’t expected to return for the remainder of the season even if the Pistons were invited to Orlando. Casey said the former No. 1 overall pick is on track with his recovery.
“I talked to Blake yesterday. Blake is doing well,” Casey said. “He’s got his workout. Blake is one of the hardest workers I’ve been around. He’s coming along. He’s right on schedule as far as his rehab is concerned.”