PHILADELPHIA, PA – APRIL 04: General Manager Elton Brand of the Philadelphia 76ers talks on the phone prior to the game against the Milwaukee Bucks at the Wells Fargo Center on April 4, 2019 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Bucks defeated the 76ers 128-122. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
New York Knicks’ president Leon Rose is looking to hire a new general manager, and Elton Brand appear to be the No. 1 candidate.
The NBA season is idle right now, but New York Knicks president Leon Rose is looking to make his first significant hire. According to Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer, 76ers’ general manager Elton Brand is a candidate to be the Knicks’ general manager.
Brand became the general manager in Philadelphia in September of 2018, after Bryan Colangelo’s resignation. He has made some big moves, trading for Jimmy Butler in his first months on the job before signing Tobias Harris, Josh Richardson and Al Horford in free agency last offseason. Horford has not fit well with Joel Embiid, and when the season was suspended the 76ers held the No. 6 seed in the East.
Brand is under contract with Philadelphia through next season, so he’s not readily available and Pompey further reported the 76ers are happy with his work. But Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News reported Rose is waiting to see if Brand gets fired after the playoffs. If there any playoffs this year, of course.
Scott Perry is currently the Knicks’ general manager, but the dismissal of team president Steve Mills during trade deadline week puts the rest of the front office on at best shaky ground. Perry’s contract also reportedly has opt-outs for him and the team this summer, which feels like a foregone conclusion to be done one way or the other.
The Knicks have a long run of ill-advised hires and short leashes, and how successful Rose (a former agent) will be as team president is to be determined. But owner James Dolan appears to be giving Rose the ability to run the show as he sees fit, which is a step in the right direction.
Brand looks like the No. 1 candidate to be the next Knicks’ general manager. Getting him is another matter, as 76ers might not let him leave easily, but credit to Rose for starting his search with a candidate he seems to see as ideal for his new regime.