Tag: Bob Myers

President of basketball …

President of basketball operations/general manager Bob Myers provided the following anecdote during a podcast appearance on “The TK Show” with Tim Kawakami of The Athletic: “The night we traded (Alec) Burks and (Glenn) Robinson — that was a little bit of a gut-wrenching thing for the people on the team. Those guys were good players and good guys and did everything we asked of them. “And I had a moment, too. I started questioning. We’re really kind of ripping our fabric apart here. And (assistant general manager) Mike Dunleavy — who played 15 years — said, ‘Here’s the other side of that coin: The fact that guys are in tears — and we’ve only won 10 games or 12 games and don’t want to leave — says something about what you guys have created.’ “So I’m proud of that part … it sucks to lose. But what makes it good or bad are the people.”

The so-called “agent model” they are …

The so-called “agent model” they are adopting, furthermore, has flopped (with Lon Babby in Phoenix and Arn Tellem in Detroit) as often as it has flourished (Bob Myers in Golden State and Rob Pelinka with the Los Angeles Lakers). The skeptics are also bound to point out that, as recently as last May, no one was looking to the Lakers for any sort of blueprint. LeBron James chose to sign with the Lakers as a free agent in July 2018 independent of anyone working for them — and they were a franchise in disarray, after Magic Johnson’s unforeseen resignation as team president in April, until Anthony Davis forced a trade to the Lakers to team up with James.

Report: Warriors ‘investigating deals’ that shed salary, lower tax bill and bring back draft value

With the trade deadline around the corner, Adrian Wojnarowski is reporting the Warriors are “investigating deals that shed salary and lower their tax bill” but can bring back draft value as well.

The NBA trade deadline is quickly approaching, and for the first time in years, the Golden State Warriors are in the middle of all the rumors. Competing in five-straight NBA titles with a roster that features four healthy All-Star caliber players has left the Warriors content in trade deadlines of the past. However, in the 2019-20 season, things are changing.

The Warriors have already traded center Willie Cauley-Stein to the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for a second-round pick, and with the deadline to make trades right around the corner, the rumors around Golden State are heating up.

23-year-old guard, D’Angelo Russell, has been the centerpiece of most trade chatter with several different teams being connected. Reports have indicated both the New York Knicks and the Minnesota Timberwolves are interested in Russell. Yet, there hasn’t been a deal to come to fruition yet.

When it comes to the deadline, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Warriors are “investigating deals that shed salary and lower tax bill — as well as bring back some draft value.”

Wojnarowski mentions that the Warriors could hold onto Russell through the deadline. If a team can’t meet Golden State’s pricepoint, seeing Russell alongside a healthy Stephen Curry would be an intriguing option for Warriors’ decision-makers.

Curry has played only four games this season, limiting any opportunity for Russell and the two-time Most Valuable Player to build chemistry. If Curry’s rehab from his broken hand injury continues to go as planned, he could return sometime in March, giving him and Russell around 20 games to play together before the end of the season.

If the Curry and Russell backcourt experiment fails, the Warriors could look to tweak their roster over the offseason instead of the upcoming trade deadline.

Knicks are reportedly considering CAA NBA agent to run front office

The Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers have former agents running their front offices. The New York Knicks may follow that model.

The Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers have former agents running their front offices. The New York Knicks may follow that model.

Golden State hired Wasserman Media Group’s Bob Myers back in 2011 while Los Angeles brought on Landmark Sports founder Rob Pelinka in 2017. Both have since been promoted to become president of basketball operations for those marquee franchises.

New York moved on from their president of basketball operations Steve Mills on Tuesday morning, per reports. Mills began working with the Knicks in 2003 and took over as their president of basketball operations in July 2017.

General manager Scott Perry will take over his role in the interim, per several reports. But according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Ramona Shelburne, the Knicks’ ownership group is considering replacing Mills with an NBPA certified agent.

SNY’s Ian Begley reported that CAA’s Austin Brown (co-head of basketball for the company) is one of the agents being considered for the position.

Brown currently represents last year’s No. 1 pick Zion Williamson. Other clients include former NBA All-Star D’Angelo Russell (who has been linked to New York in recent trade rumors), Donovan Mitchell, Jaren Jackson Jr., Kyle Kuzma and various other prominent players.

This would follow a trend for the Knicks, who were known to be swayed by the agency when Carmelo Anthony (represented by CAA’s Leon Rose) was the star player for the team.

Here is what Kurt Helin wrote about the connections to the agency at the time (via NBC Sports):

“If you listen to the scuttlebutt around the league, Andrea Bargnani is a Knick because he is a CAA/Leon Rose client just like ‘Melo (why else would you take on that contract?). Why did the Knicks give a roster spot to Chris Smith, JR’s brother? CAA. That’s just the tip of the rumor iceberg.”

Before 13-time NBA champion Phil Jackson took over basketball operations for the Knicks in 2014, he “vowed to relinquish the team’s close ties” with the prominent agency.

Their former head coach Mike Woodson, who was represented by CAA, was fired by the organization just a few weeks after the comments by Jackson. JR Smith, a former CAA client, was traded by the Knicks to the Cleveland Cavaliers a few months later. Bargnani played just one more season for New York under Jackson’s leadership.

While the team publicly distanced themselves from CAA’s influence over the past few years, it is no surprise to see them considering Brown or another agent, considering Myers and Pelinka have had success in their current roles.

For what it is worth: Across town and in a different league back in October 2018, the New York Mets hired former CAA Co-Head of Baseball Brodie Van Wagenen as their general manager back in 2018. Before joining the franchise, he represented several players (e.g. Yoenis Cespedes, Jacob DeGrom, Robinson Cano and even minor leaguer Tim Tebow) on the team.

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