B’klyn’s assistant GM eyed by Hornets
Charlotte Hornets President of Basketball Operations Mitch Kupchak moved into an advisory role on Monday, which has left the franchise in immediate need of a new head of basketball operations.
Nets assistant general manager Jeff Peterson is one of several NBA executives who could fill that void in Charlotte, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The job likely comes with a nice pay raise as well.
Peterson, who hails from Springfield, Mo., played collegiately at Iowa, Arkansas and Florida State. He was then hired by the Atlanta Hawks as seasonal basketball operations assistant in 2012, later being promoted to coordinator of basketball operations then director of scouting in 2015.
Nets general manager Sean Marks recruited Peterson to Brooklyn ahead of the 2019-20 season.
“Jeff is an innovative basketball executive who shares our strategic team building vision and will fit seamlessly within our culture,” Brooklyn said in a statement when Peterson was first brought on board. “His extensive scouting and front office experience will be tremendous assets to our group as we continue to move forward.”
Peterson was profiled by Mike Vorkunov in The Athletic’s inaugural “40 Under 40” list in 2022. In the story, Marks called Peterson a “rare breed”.
“He is not afraid to get a little dirty,” Marks told Vorkunov. “Just because you’re the assistant GM doesn’t mean you can’t do some of the other tasks, and I think for what we do here, we’re responsible for everything. Titles don’t mean anything. So it doesn’t matter who has a great idea, whether it’s a draft pick, a free agent, or whatever or trade and Jeff is somebody who’s a great listener.
“I think that certainly helps, you know if you have a leader that listens to people, and I think that he does that really well.”
Kupchak, a two-time NBA champion with the Los Angeles Lakers as a player, enjoyed a playing career that spanned a decade. The 69-year-old then spent three decades in the Lakers’ front office, where he oversaw four NBA titles and six Finals runs.