Report: Milwaukee Bucks Adding Two Names to GM List

As the Milwaukee Bucks continue their quest to replace departed general manager John Hammond, Adrian Wojnarowski reports that the team has requested and been granted permission to contact two more candidates: Pat Garrity (assistant GM in Detroit) and Adam Simon (assistant GM in Miami/general manager of the NBA G-League’s Sioux Falls Skyforce).

Garrity, 40, actually started his NBA career with the Milwaukee Bucks! The team drafted him 19th overall in the 1998 NBA Draft, then proceeded to trade his rights to the Mavs (along with the rights to the 9th overall pick) for the draft rights for the 6th overall pick. Informed Bucks fans might also remember this as the “Tractor Traylor Trade,” which resulted in some guy named Dirk Nowitzki playing for the Dallas Mavericks for the past two decades. Garrity ended up in Phoenix (when the Mavs acquired Steve Nash), and after a year was bounced over to Orlando (when the Suns acquired Penny Hardaway) where he spent the rest of his playing career.

After his retirement, Garrity went back to school and earned an MBA from Duke University, but eventually returned to basketball when Stan Van Gundy (formerly the longtime coach of the Orlando Magic) took over basketball operations for the Detroit Pistons, and invited Garrity to return to the league. Then in June 2016, Garrity was promoted to assistant general manager, where he became an expert in basketball analytics and salary cap management.

Simon, 44, originally joined the Miami Heat 21 seasons ago (!) as an intern working in the video room with current head coach Erik Spoelstra. Simon later joined the Heat’s scouting department, where he specialized in scouting internationally. In September of 2013, he was promoted to assistant GM, and as of August 2014 he has served in both his current capacity and as GM of the Heat’s D-League affiliate, where Simon was named the league’s first-ever Executive of the Year.

Both candidates bring an interesting resumé to the opening in Milwaukee, and join the other four names that highlighted the initial list: Ed Stefanski (Memphis), Wes Wilcox (Atlanta), Peter Dinwiddie (Indiana), and Arturas Karnisovas (Denver). These six external candidates are also joined by Justin Zanik, Milwaukee’s interim general manager. It appears that the Rod Thorn-led effort to “cast a wide net” is fully in effect, and with such little time before the NBA offseason begins in earnest, the Bucks had better be sure that they’re making the right moves this summer... or they may look back at this point in time as where the wrong turn was taken.

UPDATE