R.J. Hampton Heading Overseas

RJ Hampton is a Texas high school basketball player who was recruited by premier programs in the United States. However, it looks like Hampton has decided to spurn those offers and make money right now. That means he's heading overseas and get paid while waiting for the 2020 NBA Draft.

The 6-foot-5 point guard signed a two-year contract with the New Zealand Breakers, a team in the NBL. As a result of his signing with the Breakers, the team will be eligible to receive an $800,000 buyout from any team that selects Hampton in the first round of the draft.

Breakers part-owner and managing director Matt Walsh said about this move and the impact of college programs, "It will be kind of a wake-up moment for college programs...People are going to think, 'How on earth did they lose him to New Zealand?'"

Hampton got offers from Kansas, Memphis, Duke and Kentucky but because of NCAA rules regarding pay, Hampton has spurned those offers to get paid now.

He will join the Breakers as part of the local NBL's Next Stars Program, meaning he'll be paid by the league and not the team. The standard contracts in these programs are around $100,000, but it's expected to be far more than that for Hampton because of his skills and abilities.

There has been a 13-year-rule in place that bars players from entering the draft directly out of high school. Hampton, however, isn't the first player to opt for professional basketball over college. Emmanuel Mudiay played in China and became the No. 7 pick in the 2015 draft. Brandon Jennings spent a season in Italy and was then selected 10th in the 2009 draft.

The NBA and the union are discussing getting rid of the one-and-done rule so that high schoolers can join the league directly. Among those who left high school straight for the NBA are LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, and Kevin Garnett. All of those guys will be in the Hall of Fame.

I honestly can't applaud the move fully because I would like to see this guy on a college program where he can have an impact on one of those teams as they get to the NCAA Tournament next year. However, it's clear that money does speak more than college, and the fact that college's latest scandal are starting to turn away some high-profile athletes. Hampton isn't the first one, as I mentioned.

I know about the New Zealand Breakers, having followed the Sydney Kings, who also play in the NBL, and I know they do get some decent players from time to time. But this will be a big step for them, even if it is one year. I believe Hampton can be a big star in that league and carry the Breakers. His numbers and his impact on the high school level can translate if they stick to those numbers.

This kid wants to get paid right away, and he'll have the opportunity to do that in New Zealand. He will also be able to grow and improve his skills, in order to be ready for the 2020 draft. Mudiay and Jennings have already made big impacts in the NBA, and if Hampton can do that and play well in New Zealand for one year, he'll be a top-5 pick.

Did Phil Kessel's Trade Rejection Save The Wild?

Going into the offseason, there's going to be plenty of attention given to what the Pittsburgh Penguins are planning on doing with Phil Kessel. The Penguins are obviously trying to move on from Kessel and his salary in an attempt to put less expensive players at his position. As a result, we have an attempted trade a few days ago that Kessel himself blocked.

Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet was the first to report that Kessel has vetoed a trade that would have sent him to the Minnesota Wild in exchange of Jason Zucker. Part of this deal also included Jack Johnson going to Minnesota and Victor Rask going to Pittsburgh.

At first point, it would seem that Kessel wouldn't be against this deal. It would put him possibly in a place where he can be a leader and help a Wild team get back to the playoffs. He has local connections and played for the Gophers during his college tenure and is close friends with Ryan Suter. So why the veto? Well, if you look at the state of the Wild, that may be the reason.

The state of the Wild is that they are nowhere near the playoffs and according to my friend Spencer Chute, he doesn't expect them to be competitive in the playoffs until five to seven years down the road. If you are Phil Kessel and you're 31 years old that is used to winning Stanley Cups, going to Minnesota is probably not the best option. This reported veto also doesn't look good for the Wild, because it almost makes them look like a clown show. Almost.

As for Zucker, this is now the second time the team has tried to trade him. They tried it at last year's deadline to Calgary and now this time with Pittsburgh.

The Wild are trying to move on from Zucker before his no-trade list takes effect in July. If the Wild are able to deal Zucker before then, they could get something in return and they would better off for the future. Now, it looks like they're either going to have to hold on for him or find another trade partner with a great star player who wants to play in Minnesota.

The fact that Minnesota would even consider this trade is beyond my comprehension. First off, Zucker is 27, four years younger than Kessel. Secondly, the Rask-Johnson swap would only prove that getting Rask last year was a mistake. What's worse is that they would only get Johnson's onerous contract for nothing, and then possibly lose him.

Kessel may have done the right thing, not just for himself, but for the state of the Wild as well. The Wild are terrible. They have traded off nearly their entire core group just a couple of months ago and now they think about bringing in Phil Kessel? This was not going to sell.

If the Wild want to deal Zucker, they need to get some good, young players in return, even if they are not ready for the NHL level yet. Just look at the trade that sent Charlie Coyle to the Bruins for Ryan Donato. Donato was a young and cheap piece they could pick up for the future while getting rid of Coyle's contract and getting him on a team that is in the Finals right now. If the Wild can do that with Jason Zucker, they could be better off going forward.

Kessel saved the Wild. In fact, Wild fans should thank him for vetoing this trade. Maybe now GM Paul Fenton will think twice before trading for a player that needs to be on a good team with a chance to win right now. Minnesota is not in that position and may not be for years.

What Should The Wizards Do Now?

Just this past weekend, the Washington Wizards seemed poised to hire Nuggets executive Tim Connelly to become the President of Basketball Operatons for the Wizards. It made sense, since Connelly grew up in nearby Baltimore and worked for the Wizards when he first worked in the league. His wife's family was also from the area and you would expect that he would want to come home to work for a team that would've paid him better than the Kroenke family ever would.

Then came the crushing blow. Tim Connelly rejected them.

Connelly turned down the gig on Monday to remain with the Nuggets, meaning that he will continue to build the franchise that he watched over. And as for the Wizards, that means they're back to square one in their coaching search.

The remaining three candidates on their radar are Danny Ferry, Tommy Sheppard, and Troy Weaver. Right now, there are no plans for the Wizards to offer any of them an contract. I personally believe they're not the right fits for this organization, even though Sheppard has run the team since Ernie Grunfeld was fired.

What is interesting about this is that Connelly did not want to meet formally with the Wizards. He didn't visit Capital One Arena or the Wizards' practice facility in Southeastern Washington. He instead met at Leonsis's residence to discuss the opening. Initially, Leonsis did not reach out with a contract offer but eventually gave one after being convinced at the meetings that Connelly would be the right fit for them.

Connelly did not want to leave Denver, multiple sources have said. Although he hails from the Washington area, many have said that he did not want to leave and found himself in love with Denver. Although I get that, I still believe you have to go where the money is.

Now, look, I understand why Connelly turned the job down, but family and money do speak more power in this case than staying with an organization that doesn't reward front office people that often. In this case, he was offered a new contract and signed it, but will still make significantly less money than what the Wizards offered him. It's a shame he probably didn't see the realization in that but I understand it.

As for the Wizards, it's back to the drawing board and it's back to starting over again. I'm not sure which candidates out there they're going to look for now, but they'll have to go back to the same search group to see if they can come up with a new candidate who could be the ideal fit that they saw in Connelly. However, whoever takes this job will be tasked with reshaping a culture that won't have John Wall for most of next year due to repairing an Achilles tendon, as well as the difficult task of trading Bradley Beal. The one other thing that Connelly had that the Wizards would like, is somebody who has a connection with the city and the team. They like people who hold that particular trait in them because those people understand the team better than anyone else.

It's going to be a tough search going forward, since Connelly fit the bill of what the Wizards were looking for. Now, you have to go out and find somebody who does fit the bill about the same or even better.

The Lakers Are In A Crisis

We all know that the Los Angeles Lakers were a dismal franchise going into today. Their President of Basketball Operations, Magic Johnson, resigned just before the season ended. Their head coach Luke Walton decided to leave and take the Kings job. Now, we have a new chapter added to this dysfunction and it comes from Johnson himself.

Hours before the Lakers introduced their new head coach Frank Vogel, Johnson was on ESPN's First Take to discuss his situation and why he left the Lakers office, and he didn't hold back in his interview. However, the interview also may have harmed his own reputation and those of people he loved and the franchise he loved so dear.

Johnson described the situation with the Lakers as both one of a circus and one of a snakepit. He accused GM Rob Pelinka of being a backstabber and said business executive Tim Harris was butting into situations where he didn't belong. He also portrayed the youngest Buss brothers of being entitled and clueless about being executives on the Lakers.

He also said of Jeanie Buss that she is incapable of hearing multiple opinions and making the right decision. Based on what Johnson said, though, it's suggesting that Buss is incapable of making any decision, right or wrong.

So this is where we are at the crossroads. Magic Johnson is accusing the Lakers of basically being unable to run a basketball team, and he seemingly pointed the finger to the Buss family, and particularly Jeanie Buss, who runs this whole unit.

I won't even worry about what went on at the news conference to introduce Vogel today, because Pelinka just defended himself, saying that Johnson's comments were wrong and he was hoping to clear the air with Johnson in the future. Looks like that future won't come anytime soon.

Then there's the situation with LeBron James. The reason why LeBron came to LA and wanted to be a part of the Lakers was because of Magic Johnson. He thought Magic Johnson and himself were going to be able to turn this around together. He didn't even expect that Magic would just walk out the door at the end of their first season together. It's why I felt Magic should've talked to LeBron because this all went down. But that's that.

One of the reasons LeBron got away from Cleveland was that he was tired of the dysfunction that was surrounding that franchise. He felt Magic Johnson gave him a sense of security, a sense of belonging, and that this was a stable franchise that knew what it was going. Clearly, things have changed since he got there and now he’s probably wondering what the hell has he gotten himself into?

What the Lakers have become is just astonishing to me. They were once a model franchise because Jerry Buss saw them as more than basketball. He saw them as an icon of Hollywood and of sports. It was the most stable franchise in the NBA when Buss ran it. Now that he’s gone and his kids are nowhere near their father’s level. They’ve made this team a clown show and an embarrassment to the NBA and to sports in general. They were too close to the past and it hurt them. Magic Johnson was part of that past that is clearly failing.

My opinion of Magic Johnson may have changed slightly, but only on his front office role. He clearly was not ready to be a President of Basketball Operations for his franchise. He hasn’t had the experience to do this job and he spent too much time doing other things. He felt that this job could be done part-time. It can’t. Please don’t take about backstabbing when it comes to Pelinka. Pelinka is no angel either, but you had no right to tell him he was a backstabber. You didn’t have the experience to do it. I’m sorry.

This Lakers team is garbage, mostly at the top. I can’t even imagine what LeBron is feeling right now, because it seems dysfunction will follow him wherever he goes, from Cleveland to Miami to LA. At least he won twice in Miami and once in Cleveland. Now, it looks like he won’t win one in LA, and that’s sad. He’s too good to still be stuck on three rings.

Now, there needs to be leadership in this organization. Somebody needs to come in and lead this team and possibly get rid of all the friction that exists right now. If that means getting rid of some of the Busses and maybe even Pelinka, it has to be done. It also can’t be in the family. Has to be someone from outside the organization. Right now, what is clearly happening is a franchise, once proud, turned into a mockery because solid leadership no longer exists.

Can they turn it around? I don’t know. Doesn’t look like it right now. But it starts at the top and someone who can show real leadership and make sure LeBron is in on everything. He’s your business partner and he deserves to know everything that he can. It’s about transparency with your players and making sure they stay in the loop and that means you take his advice, you give him leadership, and you make sure this franchise hires the right people so that it can become a pillar and a stable franchise in the NBA once again.

An Update Regarding Gianluca Pascucci

We have an update regarding Nets executive Gianluca Pascucci.

According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski on Twitter, the Minnesota Timberwolves have reached an agreement with Pascucci for him to become their next assistant GM. Pascucci will serve under new head of basketball operations Gersson Rosas. This move comes on the heels of the Wolves deciding to retain interim head coach Ryan Saunders.

Pascucci held the job of director of global scouting for the Brooklyn Nets and had been viewed as a candidate for multiple positions around the league, including being an option for promotion for the Nets after assistant GM Trajan Langdon left for the Pelicans. But instead of staying with the Nets, Pascucci will reunite with Rosas, whom he worked for in the Rockets front office before joining the Nets in 2016.

While a terrific hire for the Timberwolves, it's another blow for the Nets front office. Aside from Langdon leaving, the Nets have also lost assistant coaches Chris Fleming and Will Weaver. So it is clear that the Nets will have to fill those voids, whether from within or from outside the organization.

Pascucci has also received consideration for a position with a EuroLeague club Pallacanestro Olimpia Milano before ultimately joining the Timberwolves.

Tyreke Evans Dismissed and Disqualified From The NBA

The NBA has leveled a hard sentence on one of its players.

Today, in a press release from the NBA, Pacers guard Tyreke Evans has been dismissed and disqualified from the NBA for violating the league's anti-drug program. According to that announcement, he will be eligible for reinstatement after two years.

The Pacers said in a statement, "We take these matters seriously and will reach out to Tyreke to offer our support."

Evans was the fourth overall pick in the 2009 draft and spent 10 years playing for the Kings, Grizzlies, Pelicans, and Pacers. After signing a one-year contract with Indiana, he had a down year, averaging just 10.2 PPG, 2.9 RPG, and 2.4 APG with a career-worst .389 FG% in 69 games (20.3 MPG).

The specifics surrounding the violations are unclear at this time, but he isn't the first player to be hit with a two-year ban. Back in 2016, the league dismissed former top-five pick O.J. Mayo. Reports suggested at that time that Mayo's violation was related to a "drug of abuse" rather than PEDs or marijuana.

Chris Andersen was also banned for two years from the NBA, from 2006 to 2008, with his dismissal also being linked to a "drug of abuse."

Evans was on track to be an unrestricted free agent til this summer and now will have to sit out til at least the 2021/22 season.

I wish I had a lot to say on this, but unfortunately I don't have a lot of words. I feel bad for Tyreke, for the circumstances he went through to get there, and I just hope that he can learn a lesson from this and get back into the NBA in two years. Even then, will he want to still play in the league? That's a lot of questions to be answered, and we'll have the next two years to find out what happens.

Wishing Tyreke the best and I hope he can get some help, if indeed this is a "drug of abuse."

Cavaliers Hire J.B. Bickerstaff As Associate Head Coach

J.B. Bickerstaff is finally getting another gig, but as an associate head coach.

Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN is reporting that the Cavaliers have hired J.B. Bickerstaff as an associate head coach. Bickerstaff was a frequent target of many franchises this offseason to become their head coach, but now he will tasked with helping new head coach John Beilein transition into the NBA ranks.

Bickerstaff is a former head coach of both the Houston Rockets (interim coach) and the Memphis Grizzlies. Bickerstaff is also the son of former NBA coach Bernie Bickerstaff, who currently serves as a Senior Basketball Advisor for the Cavaliers.

Despite this recent addition, the Cavaliers will still continue plans to hire at least one other person to join Beilein's staff from the pool of candidates they had interviewed in recent weeks. Those include Alex Jensen (Utah), Jamahl Mosley (Dallas), Jordi Fernandez (Denver), and Nate Tibbetts (Portland).

First of all, I am very happy that J.B. Bickerstaff finally got another opportunity to become a head coach because I believe it was unfair of the Memphis Grizzlies to have fired him after only one season as being a head coach. Look, we understand that organizations make mistakes when it comes to their coaching hires and they usually fire GMs after the draft, based on what happens. However, I felt Bickerstaff was the right person to lead this Memphis team when it needed some solid coaching. He did that, and now the organization looks more foolish just by firing him when the team loved him.

That being said, I wish Bickerstaff nothing but the best in Cleveland and I think he has earned another chance at a head coaching job. Right now, though, he'll have a tough task helping Beilein transition and get these group of players they have now on Cleveland to prove themselves and get back to being a prominent team in the NBA.

Nets Overhauling Their Staff

The Brooklyn Nets will have to look to overhaul their staff in the wake of several names leaving positions with the team for positions in other organizations.

The latest person to leave the Brooklyn Nets is Trajan Langdon, who left to become the new GM for the New Orleans Pelicans. This is the third major off-court loss for the Nets since the season ended.

Langdon, the former assistant GM for the Nets and the reigning G-League Executive of the Year, was a very popular figure for many organizations looking to upgrade their front office positions. Langdon recently interviewed with the Timberwolves and the Wizards, along with the Pelicans.

Langdom's added value is that he spent time playing over in Europe. He has contacts spread throughout the world and speaks five languages, which could help the Pelicans attract big names from overseas. In addition to that, he has a scouting background with the Spurs and is mostly responsible for assembling the draft boards for the Nets when it came to their pick.

Who's most likely to take up the mantle, now that Langdon is gone? Gianluca Pascucci, the current director of global scouting for the Nets, is the leading candidate to step into Langdon's role. However, he is also a big name to become the GM for Olimpia Milano in the EuroLeague.

In addition to losing Langdon to the Pelicans, the Nets also lost G League coach Will Weaver, who left to take the head coaching job with the Sydney Kings in the Australian League. Chris Fleming, an assistant coach with the Nets, also left to take an assistant coaching position with Jim Boylen on the Chicago Bulls.

Jeff Hornacek is the leading candidate to take over that assistant role. He joined the Nets for training camp and some road games and based on that level of experience, is perhaps the perfect fit to take this role.

The Brooklyn Nets do have a lot of positions that they need to be. Considering that Pascucci could very well jump overseas, I wouldn't be surprised if the Nets decide to look outside their organization to find their next assistant GM candidate. There's plenty of options out there for them to look at, so we'll see which names come up there.

I think the Nets are set up for a wonderful future, assuming D'Angelo Russell continues to have improvements and they find the right people to fill these voids. Apart from that, they made the playoffs and you can't help but look up and I think that's where I see the Nets going into next season.

Blue Jackets Send Alexandre Texier To The AHL

The NHL playoffs are over for the Columbus Blue Jackets but for one of those players, the AHL playoffs are not over.

The player, Alexandre Texier, has been assigned to the Cleveland Monsters, who are still in the AHL playoffs but are battling to stay alive.

Texier has been a welcome surprise for the Blue Jackets after being selected 45th overall back in 2017. Many are still hoping he will develop into a legitimate NHL option, but played one season in France and there isn't a lot of top competition playing there. In the two seasons that followed he grew into one of the more dangerous offensive players in Finland, racking up 41 points in 55 games before deciding to come to North America.

He joined the Monsters and had an impressive showing, scoring five goals and seven points in seven games. He was called up to the Blue Jackets shortly thereafter and impressed well. Even after this playoff showing, it sounds likely he could be part of the time full-time next season.

Now, he'll try to help a struggling Monsters team that is down 0-3 in the series against the defending Calder Cup champion Toronto Marlies. That team is hoping that Texier will be the magic touch that keeps their season alive.

Pat Venditte and Yangervis Solarte Designated

Looks like it's the end of the road for both Pat Venditte and Yangervis Solarte with the Giants organization.

In the latest flurry of moves for the San Francisco organization, they have announced that Solarte and Venditte have both been designated for assignment. Their roster spots will be handed to outfielder Mac Williamson and infielder/outfielder Donovan Solano. Both of them will report to the club today.

The Giants have also optioned outfielder Mike Gerber to Triple-A Sacramento and recalled lefty Williams Jerez.

Solarte made the club right out of Spring Training after being a non-roster invitee. However, his numbers haven't come to form. During his 2014-17 tenure with the Yankees and Padres, he carried a .267/.327/.419 hitter line. He was capable of playing multiple spots on the infield. However, when he went to the Toronto Blue Jays, he struggled. The Giants wasn't much better. He batted .205/.247/.315 during his time in SF.

The numbers are not much better for Venditte. He signed a contract this offseason but in his time in the Giants bullpen, he gave up six runs on four hits, a pair of walks, and three hit batters with two strikeouts in only 3 1/3 innings of work. His ERA is 5.03 in 68 big league innings, so it was clear he wasn't going to factor in long-term for the Giants. He hasn't been able to stick well at the big league, anyway, either with the Giants or Dodgers.

The moves make sense, not because of their bad numbers, but because Farhan Zaidi is always trying to look for those impact players. And while Venditte was one of his guys, it became clear as the season went on that he most likely wasn't going to make it at the big league, and even if he did, it wasn't going to stick.

As for Solarte, I feel bad for him, because I thought he was somewhat of an impact player with the Padres, and I thought the Padres organization went out of their way to support him, especially after the death of his wife. Now, he may be fighting for his baseball career, and you have to wonder if this is the end of the road for him.

Good luck to both Solarte and Venditte. We'll see if they land other jobs elsewhere, and it's more revolving doors now for Giants players.

Thank You Columbus Blue Jackets

The Columbus Blue Jackets had a miraculous season on the ice. They went through the regular season on a grind and were close to being eliminated from the playoffs. They then managed to hang on to grab the final seed in the Eastern Conference and a date with the best team in the NHL, the Tampa Bay Lightning.

As many of you already know, the Columbus Blue Jackets were one of the surprise stories this season, not because of how they were able to get into the playoffs, but how they were able to dispatch the Lightning in four straight games. That's a big achievement, and against a team that was the clear favorite to win the Stanley Cup.

That sweep allowed them to get themselves into a matchup with the Boston Bruins. The Bruins took care of the Blue Jackets in six games.

While it may seem like the Blue Jackets would go on to the Eastern Conference Final and probably a date with the Carolina Hurricanes, it was a pretty successful season because I did not expect them to get into the playoffs, much less get a surprise upset over the Lightning.

John Tortorella, his coach, and the Blue Jackets organization should be very proud of how well this team has played all season and into the playoffs. Although it did not end with a Stanley Cup, in my estimation, they have already won the NHL this season.

Throughout most of the season, they have struggled to remain within the playoff picture and they took it upon themselves to get a couple of guys from the Ottawa Senators, like Matt Duchene, to try to hold on to that spot, which ultimately helped them get that last spot. As a result, this team is resilient, this team doesn't give up, and it always fights til the final horn goes off.

I would like to say this: The Columbus Blue Jackets are a team of the future. They're a team not to be messed with. They will be competitive til the end. That's the Blue Jackets I know.

Thank you Columbus Blue Jackets. Thank you 5th Line. Thank you to the great folks of Ohio and the city of Columbus for putting together a team that doesn't give up and doesn't give in.

Have a wonderful summer and I'll see you in October!

Suns Hire Monty Williams as Next Head Coach

Sixers assistant Monty Williams is finally getting another chance at being a head coach.

The Phoenix Suns announced today in a press release that Williams will become their new head coach. Williams will remain with the Sixers until the end of that club’s playoff run before making the move.

According to a recent tweet from Shams Charania of The Athletic, the deal will be a five-year contract.

General manager James Jones said in a statement, “I am thrilled to welcome Monty Williams to the Suns family as our next head coach…Monty brings a wealth of NBA experience, both as a coach and former player, in addition to being a high-character individual who will infuse basketball wisdom and life lessons into our locker room. Monty is well respected for his coach pedigree, leadership, and commitment to the community, all of which make him the ideal person to lead our team moving forward.”

For Williams, this will be his second stint as an NBA head coach. He previously led the New Orleans Pelicans/Hornets from 2010-15. He posted a 173-221 (.439) record with the team, along with two postseason appearances. However, they didn’t win a playoff series during the stretch.

Despite this, he is regarded as one of the NBA’s top assistants, and has been working with Sixers coach Brett Brown in Philadelphia this season. He had a two-year absence before this season while he mourned the death of his wife, Ingrid, who was killed in a car crash in Oklahoma City back in February 2016.

He spent some time with the Thunder as an associate coach back in 2015-16. Before that, he was an assistant for Portland for several years.

Williams is taking over the role in Phoenix previously filled by Igor Kokoskov, who was fired after one season. The idea that the Suns are giving him a five-year deal suggests to many, including to me, that they are finally going to give a head coach some patience in developing the team, including stars like Devin Booker, Deandre Ayton, and Mikal Bridges, as well as some other young prospects.

Whether or not this is an ideal move for Williams, it’s clear that he would like to be a head coach. The only thing I question about this is whether or not he’ll actually go those five years. The consensus around the league is that Robert Sarver is the worst owner in the league and that nobody would like to work for him. However, the talent on the court is very promising and that would appeal to any head coach.

I wish Monty Williams the best and I hope this works out better than it did in New Orleans. However, you can never be too sure with Sarver, as well as the rest of that Suns front office. He will need to be more effective in this position than Kokoskov, and that may mean winning one year in, or even this season.

Wolves Hiring Gersson Rosas As President of Basketball Operations

The Timberwolves seem to have found their next man to lead their basketball operations.

According to Jon Kwaczynski and Shams Charania of The Athletic (link), with confirmation by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (link), the Wolves are planning to hire Rockets executive Gersson Rosas as their new President of Basketball Operations. With this move, it means that Rosas will assume control of Minnesota’s front office.

Rosas has spent the last two decades with the Rockets. He most recently served as their executive Vice President of basketball operations and was a close associate of general manager Daryl More. Rosas also had a brief stint as the Mavericks’ GM back in 2013 but returned to Houston when it didn’t work in Dallas.

Many teams had been exploring adding Rosas to their front office in some capacity. He was linked to top jobs in Charlotte, Detroit, and Philadelphia last season. This spring, he interviewed with the Pelicans and the Wizards, in addition to the Wolves. In a recent tweet by Wojnarowski, Rosas met with the Wolves with the second time that also included owner Glen Taylor.

Head coach Tom Thibodeau was the President of Basketball Operations title for the Wolves heading into the 2018-19 season, but was fired during the season. General manager Scott Layden assumed that control shortly thereafter.

Now that Rosas has been fired, his next task will be what role will this have in Layden’s future? And how will this also affect head coach Ryan Saunders. The Wolves are said to want to have both men back, but with Rosas in control, he’ll probably make his own decision regarding that.

Despite the sorting out of the front office Rosas will have to do, he will also have to deal with a challenging offseason ahead. They missed the playoffs this season and the big contracts that Andrew Wiggins, Jeff Teague, and Gorgui Dieng all have are still on the club’s books.

Gersson Rosas is a fine man, and I believe he fits into what the Timberwolves are looking for in a new President of Basketball Ops. It’ll be very interesting to see how this plays out with both Saunders and Layton. My guess is that Rosas will keep one or the other. I wouldn’t be so confident that both of them will be back in their capacity. Most of the time, a new President of Basketball Ops would really like to bring in their own guys to run things. That may happen here.

The Timberwolves have their man to lead their front office. Now, we just have to wait and see what kinds of moves he’ll make, not just with the front office, but perhaps with acquiring talent for this Timberwolves team, so they can get back to getting competitive.