Nuggets general manager search: Candidates Denver could consider to run basketball operations

As the Nuggets begin their offseason one of the first orders of business is to hire a new general manager to replace Calvin Booth and oversee basketball operations The company had not yet moved forward with a search as of the end of the season according to a gang source So where does the franchise start The internal promotion path Based on the Kroenkes actions since firing Booth Ben Tenzer is the leading candidate in this category He attended Denver s first challenge without Booth alongside the ownership group in Sacramento and he was named interim general manager the following week Tenzer has been GM of Denver s G League affiliate the Grand Rapids Gold for the last two seasons He first worked for the Nuggets as a aspirant intern out of Boulder in - Assistant general manager Tommy Balcetis also could be considered if the Kroenkes choose to look within Born in Lithuania Balcetis has been with the organization since If the Nuggets ultimately make an internal hire for both the GM and head coach positions it would indicate that firing Booth and Michael Malone was enough to fully cleanse the organization of its divided workplace way of life in their view that a fresh slate has already been established without needing an outside perspective Second in command in the current era first the next morning Quite a meager NBA front offices operate with both a general manager and a president of basketball operations the latter of whom is generally atop the decision-making hierarchy Denver hasn t had a POBO since Tim Connelly left for Minnesota meaning its general manager hire will likely be entrusted with a good deal of authority Fittingly one of the more consistently murmured names in newest weeks has been Matt Lloyd the current Timberwolves GM under none other than Connelly Minnesota has been one of the NBA s boldest front offices in new years from the Rudy Gobert transaction to the shocking exchange with the Knicks headlined by Karl-Anthony Towns and Julius Randle Fans of the rebuilding Washington Wizards have adopted an online catch phrase in recent months Let Will Dawkins cook The NBA is not letting Will Dawkins cook Washington tumbled four spots in the draft lottery this month a devastating blow to a long-suffering group that had positioned itself as favorably as achievable to win the Cooper Flagg sweepstakes The Washington GM works in conjunction with Monumental Sports president Michael Winger Are the Wizards so down on their luck that a popular young executive might think twice There are plenty of other examples in front offices around the league Clippers general manager Trent Redden has done an admirable job turning lemons into lemonade with POBO Lawrence Frank Mike Gansey has helped build the Cavaliers back into an Eastern Conference contender as GM and second-in-command since Elton Brand ers GM under Daryl Morey was reportedly linked to an opening in Atlanta in the last few days Lately fired general managers A handful of experienced NBA executives became available in April along with Booth Perhaps the majority notably the Pelicans fired David Griffin a championship-winning general manager Cleveland who ran basketball operations in New Orleans for six years His tenure there was ultimately torpedoed by the fickle durability of No pick Zion Williamson Griffin continued to draft well Nickeil Alexander-Walker Herb Jones Trey Murphy III Dyson Daniels Yves Missi but his final season was ravaged by injuries and a questionable contract of Daniels On the other side of that Daniels pact was Landry Fields who nonetheless lost his job in Atlanta at the end of this season The former Knicks and Raptors contestant spent five years with the Hawks including three as general manager drafting Zaccharie Risacher first overall in He has previous experience as a G League GM with the Austin Spurs Also out of a job in the last few days Monte McNair who mutually agreed to part procedures with Sacramento just two years after winning NBA Executive of the Year for building a third-place squad The top shelf The Kroenkes already owe Malone more than million for the remainder of his contract and their luxury tax bills are piling up penance for an expensive roster that isn t getting any cheaper Needless to say this is an unlikely category Related Articles Nuggets Podcast What s next after Denver is eliminated by Oklahoma City Thunder Nikola Jokic misses out on th MVP voted runner-up to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Keeler Nikola Jokic s championship window with Nuggets George Karl s got plan to save it Was Meeting in Oklahoma City end of Nuggets championship core four Former Nuggets coach Michael Malone joins ESPN coverage for Western Conference finals But if they decide there s no such thing as too expensive Warriors architect turned ESPN analyst Bob Myers remains the most of coveted individual on the area It s been widely speculated that he might float back into a front office someday And as it s been noted Myers announced on television this January that if I was building a squad to win a championship Nikola Jokic would be my first pick Then there s the familiar name around town Tim Connelly Basic logic precludes him from legitimate candidacy He too is for high-end shoppers The Nuggets already allowed their former POBO to slip away for more money in Minnesota Now as an opt-out clause looms in Connelly s contract it stands to reason that to lure him away from a Timberwolves company making its second straight Western Conference Finals one must pay the man Like pay him more than what Denver already didn t pay him Here s one more wild card because why not Andy Elisburg has been Pat Riley s right-hand man for years There s no telling what it would take to pry him away from Miami where he has worked since and held the GM title since But if the Nuggets want to shoot for the stars one of the the majority universally respected executives in the league apparently deserves a call Want more Nuggets news Sign up for the Nuggets Insider 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