Next GM Watch

[ThisIStheYear]

The current team did a pretty good job with the Davis trade. Credit where credit is due. Can they draft? This upcoming pick has a lot riding on it. Obtaining a second star is essential.

[F Gump]

For those who have wanted to laugh at my idea of Presti as the new guy in charge, the DMN is jumping on my bandwagon. They didn't mention Presti alone, but he was the 2nd name on their short list. And their article takes the very same approach I believe in - ending with the same type of people in mind - that the Mavs need an EXPERT, they have an owner with incredibly deep pockets, and he needs to hire the best. PERIOD.

https://www.dallasnews.com/sports/maveri...ryl-morey/

The fact is, high level EXPERT execs at the GM level do get hired away. Money talks, when the owner is willing to spend it.

Git 'er done. Go get Presti.

[cow]

For those who have wanted to laugh at my idea of Presti as the new guy in charge, the DMN is jumping on my bandwagon. They didn't mention Presti alone, but he was the 2nd name on their short list. And their article takes the very same approach I believe in - ending with the same type of people in mind - that the Mavs need an EXPERT, they have an owner with incredibly deep pockets, and he needs to hire the best. PERIOD.

https://www.dallasnews.com/sports/maveri...ryl-morey/

The fact is, high level EXPERT execs at the GM level do get hired away. Money talks, when the owner is willing to spend it.

Git 'er done. Go get Presti.

Don't you mean, "our idea"?

[FireNicoHarrison]

Dumont can't even do himself a coffe. He is a moron.

[Chicagojk]

Man, Dallas will need to move fast when the season ends.   I just get the feeling that Ricardi and Finley will stay in similar roles, and the new guy brought in is the President of operations role and not a true GM.   Ricardi and Finley will report to him.   Some teams have set up like this.    That person will have a lot of leadway with Dumont not interfering, but also not be the person handling the day to day scouting.   Just a feel at the moment.

[DanSchwartzgan]

Man, Dallas will need to move fast when the season ends.   I just get the feeling that Ricardi and Finley will stay in similar roles, and the new guy brought in is the President of operations role and not a true GM.   Ricardi and Finley will report to him.   Some teams have set up like this.    That person will have a lot of leadway with Dumont not interfering, but also not be the person handling the day to day scouting.   Just a feel at the moment.

This is probably the most likely outcome.  Dumont has been willing to spend on upper tier leadership.  But, you never want to tie the hands of the top guy and say you have to retain these guys that are already here.  That's a surefire way to run off the very best out there who will have their own relationships they prefer.

[KillerLeft]

This is probably the most likely outcome.  Dumont has been willing to spend on upper tier leadership.  But, you never want to tie the hands of the top guy and say you have to retain these guys that are already here.  That's a surefire way to run off the very best out there who will have their own relationships they prefer.

My thoughts, exactly. No issue with the structure Chicago suggested, and if the new guy wants to keep Riccardi and/or Finley, great. But, they had better not be trying to hire someone "real" without giving them hire/fire ability over anyone on the basketball side of the organization.

[loki]

Zach Kleiman, anyone? He drafts well, gets good value in trades, and is theoretically more obtainable than Presti. He put together a good squad in Memphis before they were derailed by injuries/Ja going off the deep end.

[KillerLeft]

Seeing Bob Myers' name thrown around as a potential for the CHI GM job, it occurs to me that we haven't considered him enough here. I remember we dismissed him early on, but can't remember why. Given the involvement of Rick Welts and the other tidbits we've gleaned, doesn't Myers make quite a bit of plausible sense?

[KillerLeft]

Seeing Bob Myers' name thrown around as a potential for the CHI GM job, it occurs to me that we haven't considered him enough here. I remember we dismissed him early on, but can't remember why. Given the involvement of Rick Welts and the other tidbits we've gleaned, doesn't Myers make quite a bit of plausible sense?

Whoops - guess not. 

https://youtu.be/MMXILdLmhnE?si=-J7xW7Z6Wcpr6pnn

[mvossman]

Whoops - guess not. 

https://youtu.be/MMXILdLmhnE?si=-J7xW7Z6Wcpr6pnn

Issac still thinks there is a chance.  He called the AD salary dump.

[KillerLeft]

Issac still thinks there is a chance.  He called the AD salary dump.

Let’s be honest - most of us knew the AD salary dump was coming. Still, that is encouraging.

[mvossman]

Let’s be honest - most of us knew the AD salary dump was coming. Still, that is encouraging.

I didn't think it would come at the TDL (which is what he called).  Between the injury, the lack of GM and the lack of buyers, I was a little shocked the trigger got pulled.

[KillerLeft]

I didn't think it would come at the TDL (which is what he called).  Between the injury, the lack of GM and the lack of buyers, I was a little shocked the trigger got pulled.

I get what you’re saying, but looking back at the discussion in its entirety, my recollection is that most of us knew deep down that the Mavs were up against it, financially, in an untenable way and that the only true path forward was to get rid of the max contract attached to someone who couldn’t play very often and was already focused on getting another one. Sure, we had a lively discussion that turned into a roller coaster about what was possible/likely, but I feel we would have seen it coming, pretty clearly had it not been for a few people on one extreme of the conversation.

I was pretty shocked they were able to get under the tax THIS season, to be honest.

That’s neither here nor there. I hope you and Isaac are right, because I think Meyers might be the absolute best we can plausibly hope for.

[FireNicoHarrison]

I told you guys multiple times that street clothes was out of Dallas before the TDL, it's all another domino move after Nico departure.

[cjeter24]

This is probably the most likely outcome.  Dumont has been willing to spend on upper tier leadership.  But, you never want to tie the hands of the top guy and say you have to retain these guys that are already here.  That's a surefire way to run off the very best out there who will have their own relationships they prefer.

I think if someone doesn't want qualified people here to help make smart decisions they aren't the right person for the job. I am a big Ricardi fan and he's got alot of fans in the NBA front offices from what I've heard and read. I've heard less on Finley but he's well liked at least. 

I think you need a President of Basketball Ops and a GM. I've been saying it for a years. A single voice of power leads to Luka type trades. 

Honestly we sort of had this dynamic for years with Donnie and Cuban. Except Cuban is an idiot and not a basketball guy. But he was the one making the strategic decisions like blowing up the title team and doing plan powder. Donnie was the guy who had to execute everything. 

As for the Bob Meyers part, he gets alot of flak for some truly horrendous draft decisions and lucking into his stars that were already drafted. He didn't build the team. I suppose he deserves a bit of credit for sustained success but it sort of feels like they would have had that without him based on the guys he had. 

But he definitely provides a ton of credibility and stabilization. you could do alot worse but you also could do better.

[Chicagojk]

https://x.com/kennybybee/status/20441169...78865?s=61

[KillerLeft]

https://x.com/kennybybee/status/20441169...78865?s=61

Ugh. Not a fan. I'd rather have Lindsey, frankly, but I fear his chances ended with the latest Cuban/Dumont war flaring up.

[Smitty]

https://x.com/kennybybee/status/20441169...78865?s=61

Copy and paste from an article, re. Connelly, where Minnesota is the 10th ranked front office in the NBA.
 

Minnesota has a lot in common with Cleveland here. Both front offices are incredibly bold. Tim Connelly traded Karl-Anthony Towns after the best season in franchise history. He just mounted an out-of-nowhere pursuit of Giannis Antetokounmpo. Both front offices are also good at fixing their mistakes. The Timberwolves couldn't find a way to re-sign Nickeil Alexander-Walker last offseason while staying below the second apron, so they traded for Ayo Dosunmu to replace him.
Of course, this marks the first meaningful difference between the two teams: Dan Gilbert would've just shrugged and gone into the second apron. It's still not clear how committed to spending this ownership group is going to be. Connelly got points for ingenuity with how he handled Mike Conley at the deadline, using a late first-round pick swap to dump his salary, but getting far enough below the first apron in the process to re-sign him after he was subsequently dealt again and bought out. Of course... there was no tangible basketball benefit to doing so. That flexibility might have helped them land Giannis, but ultimately, it just saved money.
Connelly's boldness has also come back to bite him a bit more than Cleveland's has. The decision to trade a lightly protected swap and an unprotected first-round pick deep in the future for Rob Dillingham was a good risk in theory, but in practice, it was a bet on the wrong player. Ultimately, the move was a borderline disaster. The Rudy Gobert trade, even in light of Minnesota's consecutive trips to the conference finals, was an overpay. How much worse is Walker Kessler than Gobert, really? The gap is not the overwhelming majority of Minnesota's tradable draft capital. Connelly's aggression and creativity are by and large positive traits. It's also fair to wonder if he gets a bit too fixated on specific moves and overpays to his detriment. Who else could Minnesota have pursued alongside Anthony Edwards if Connelly had been a bit more cautious about giving away all of those picks? We'll never know.
Still, the track record speaks for itself. In addition to those two conference finals trips, Connelly built the bulk of Denver's 2023 championship team. He is unquestionably a very good general manager. This is just the range of the list in which concerns start to get a bit more noticeable. 

NBA front office rankings: Lakers fall, Hornets rise in post-trade deadline check-in, OKC, Boston still on top - CBS Sports

[Chicagojk]

Don't know the full Connelly resume, but he is well thought of across the league.  I can how see dealing with AROD may get old.     That roster is in a weird spot.  Can you be in a weird spot with a good team?

I feel like Minny has made smart decisions and have been aggressive when needed.    I am not a huge Gobert fan but I think that can be viewed as a solid trade, right?  I think he was good to get off KAT and I think that trade has been good for Minnesota.  He got off DLO for Conley that helped them raise a level.   I think the Ayo trade was a good gamble.    They were supposedly going hard after Giannis at the trade deadline.  

The Dillingham miss was a big one.    Leading to being really thin and pretty poor at PG with an aging Conley.   I have liked his draft picks...most have not really panned out though.   I think the two bigs he picked this past draft are both interesting.   

Is he the right guy?  I don't know.  It sounds like Dumont wants more than a GM.   He will need a leader who can basically run an organization.    Even the best organizations have a ton of guys who think they should be in higher roles, so you need someone who will command respect.    

I have no idea what it means he is under contract.  I would certainly not trade for him.    Do teams let these type of positions interview if they stress they are looking for a change?