3 questions Warriors face if Myers ends GM tenure Originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
SAN FRANCISCO — Bob Myers has always felt one step ahead.
He wasn’t even going to play basketball at UCLA. First, he took the walk-on path and proved his worth sooner than he could have imagined. Myers played 16 minutes as a freshman, but won a scholarship after his first season as a Bruin.
The following season, he won his first scholarship, and UCLA won them all. The cover of Sports Illustrated featured Myers lifting Tyus Edney into the air. Myers played a total of 32 minutes that season and averaged 0.3 points per game, but he remained at the center of the celebration as a respected member of the team.
Myers’ life as a sports agent rose from intern to vice president in three years.
Life as a director was supposed to grow slowly. It was a rather steep rise. Joe Lacob had seen enough that he knew what was in front of him. Myers was hired as an assistant general manager in April 2011 and crowned Warriors general manager a year later.
Some say first impressions are everything, but Myers picked Draymond Green out of Michigan State in his first draft as lead GM with the 35th overall pick in the 2012 draft.
Lacob may need Myers’ voice and expertise as much as ever, but his future with the Warriors could be over in a little over a month. Myers’ contract expires on June 30, and he plans to meet with Bay Area media officials later this week. Those are three of his questions that Myers will need very important answers to if he decides to end his career with the Warriors.
Will Myers join another team?
This situation is always the most surreal, even if it’s the Warriors’ biggest concern. A native of the Bay Area, Myers grew up in Danville and attended Monte Vista High School. The 48-year-old has roots in the area and loves his life here.
So does his wife Kristen.
The eldest of her three daughters, now 12, Myers keeps her personal life mostly private, but behind closed doors, she’s known to be a family man, and like many people with busy schedules, she doesn’t. I want to be around children more. she grows up
In December 2022, Myers told GQ magazine, “Sometimes I get engrossed in games at night, so I’m really happy that I can go see my three daughters in the morning.” I suggested what direction his way of thinking about
Myers spent 12 years in the Warriors’ front office, 11 years as lead general manager, and 14 years as a sports agent before jumping into a new career. Sometimes change is necessary. Sometimes rest and reset are more important.
There is one team to watch out for if Myers decides to stay GM instead of another franchise. The Los Angeles Clippers could be the Warriors’ biggest threat.
Clippers general manager Michael Winger was interviewed to become the Washington Wizards’ head of basketball operations, and Myers has the utmost respect for Jerry West and never saw West’s time with the Warriors end. I didn’t want to, the Clippers have an owner named Steve Ballmer and they have the will. Taking a big turn, the franchise is about to enter new territory soon.
But Myers’ ties to the Bay Area and personal relationships with people like Steve Kerr, Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Greene would be overwhelming for him.
Doesn’t he believe in the Big Three?
Now we have the Big 3: Curry, Thompson and Green. From day one, Myers has been more than his GM to the trio. The same reasons that made him a successful player and agent and a beloved member of the UCLA Men’s Basketball National Championship team. It’s his humanity.
People trust him. He is in a position that is often not shared between players and GMs, or coaches and GMs. He walks into the building, shakes hands, smiles, and may even show off his trophy. That’s not Myers’ style, which has been lauded for him both inside and outside the Chase Center.
When Klay Thompson suffered a torn ACL in Game 6 of the 2019 NBA Finals, Myers led the corridors of Oracle Arena to the Warriors’ locker room. Myers was right behind him, listening to the echo of Dub Nation as Thompson hit the free throw and came back to the floor to run as hard as he could on the other side of the court.
The teary-eyed announcing of Kevin Durant’s Achilles tendon rupture, he sat next to Andrew Wiggins on the podium in the press conference room this season when Wiggins returned from a two-month hiatus for family reasons, and he’s been on every side of the pitch. He navigated the complexities and sided with Green, giving Thompson the award. He signed a max contract soon after his ACL rupture, making it clear that the Warriors’ great success wouldn’t happen without Curry whenever the opportunity arose.
Curry, Green, and Curry are all happy to say on the record how much they admire Myers and how important he is to the Warriors. A perfect example was on March 28, in the Warriors’ resulting 11-point victory over the New Orleans Pelicans, when Myers walked over to the Warriors’ bench and consulted an enraged Green.
“You don’t always get to see Bob’s work other than putting the team together,” Green said after the game. “But he’s so important to everything we do. I can’t imagine. And I’m looking at this league and just like Bob knows how this team is, the GM has I don’t know, maybe there are two other GMs.” In the league, he’s someone who comes down to the bench and says something, and it’s also someone I have a lot of respect for.
“If Bob comes and says something to me, it’s scripture to me. I’m going to listen to it. But it’s a relationship built over the last 11 years and one that will continue to grow.” 40 years. For him to come down and say something to me at that moment, I have to respect it and it was huge. ”
What about the future of the all-time great trio if Myers is likely to leave? lost in Green has had a lot of ups and downs in the series, Thompson hasn’t been able to find the gear he needs to shoot, and Curry has proven once again that he’s still one of basketball’s elite, but the last few games are a necessary one. I struggled without being able to demonstrate my power. Help him even what he needs.
Green has a player option this summer, and his future as a Warrior is in question. Thompson has more than $43 million in debt before he becomes an unrestricted free agent next season. The future of the Big Three is more uncertain than ever.
Does Myers believe that in order to extend the dynasty, a move involving two people not named Curry needs to happen? Is that reality too harsh for him? If he leaves, both questions will be considered and hopefully answered.
Who will replace Legend?
Like Myers once was, Mike Dunleavy Jr. is on a fast track to future GM.
The Warriors hired him as a pro scout prior to the 2018-19 season. He was then promoted to assistant general manager for the 2019-20 season. After two seasons, Dunleavy moved to Vice President of Basketball Operations for the 2021-22 championship season, where he won the title again.
All signs point to Golden State scrapping plans for two timelines and moving to a more seasoned team to build around Curry’s remaining peak. Curry, as well as Thompson, Green and Kerr still with the Warriors, likely signifies continuity as the leadership ladder progresses. Kerr has repeatedly said how much he believes in roster unity, and it’s hard to imagine him, Curry, or any other players pushing outside voices.
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Lacob’s eldest son, Kirk, has been in the front office for more than a decade and is currently the Warriors’ executive vice president of basketball operations. His younger brother Kent Lacob is credited with his work in the G League and Golden State’s growing player development system. No matter which one is promoted to GM, the antenna will be stretched for a clear reason.
There could always be an unknown number of wildcards, and Lacob might see a young Western Conference featuring enough rising teams to change mindsets from outside voices.
“The continuity that exists between Bob and the older players means he can have difficult conversations, sometimes even during matches, which is very rare, but it has helped me a lot. It became,” Kerr said of Myers after the season. “Bob and I have a great friendship, a great working relationship and I definitely hope he comes back, but it’s also a case of me wishing the best for Bob and if he quits. If I decide, of course I will leave too.” I support him 100% and we will remain friends for a long time.
“I will miss him, but I will support him in whatever he does.”
Whether it’s this year or years from now, when Myers is no longer the Warriors’ general manager, someone will be in charge of the big job. For a long time it felt like the shoes were sealed in a box to never be opened. Now they may be waiting on the front steps for the next person to tie their shoes.
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