Update: Hornets release:
The Charlotte Hornets announced today that the team will not extend the contract of General Manager Rich Cho. The Hornets will begin a search for a new general manager immediately.
“I want to thank Rich for all of his hard work with the Charlotte Hornets organization through the years and wish him and his family the best in the future,” said Hornets Chairman Michael Jordan. “Rich worked tirelessly on behalf of our team and instituted a number of management tools that have benefited our organization. We are deeply committed to our fans and to the city of Charlotte to provide a consistent winner on the court. The search will now begin for our next head of basketball operations who will help us achieve that goal.”
Last spring, the Hornets exercised their option on general manager Rich Cho for this season. It wasn’t exactly a strong vote of confidence without a contract extension.
Now, it’s becoming even more clear he’s a lame duck.
Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN:
Story filed to ESPN: Charlotte unlikely to bring back GM Rich Cho on a new contract next season, expected to pursue former Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak to partner in front office with assistant GM Buzz Peterson.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 20, 2018
Cho has had plenty of hits and misses as general manager, including a year with the Trail Blazers. But the misses have added up in Charlotte. The Hornets’ next general manager will inherit:
- Nicolas Batum (three years, $76,695,651 remaining)
- Cody Zeller (three years, $43,415,730 remaining)
- Marvin Williams (two years, $29,093,750 remaining)
- Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (two years, $26,000,000 remaining)
- Dwight Howard (one year, $23,819,725 remaining)
Kemba Walker helps, but he can’t do it alone. This bloated payroll leaves little flexibility for roster upgrades – necessary to lift Charlotte into strong playoff contention. Walker will become an unrestricted free agent in 2019, and affording him could be tricky.
This is not a good job (relative to the other 29 NBA general manager jobs, of course).
Hornets owner Michael Jordan certainly plays into that. In one of the biggest gaffes of the Cho era, Charlotte rejected the Celtics’ offer of four first-round picks for the No. 9 pick in the 2015 draft, just to pick Frank Kaminsky. (Boston wanted Justise Winslow.) Was that Cho’s call or Jordan’s?
Cho takes the fall, though. That’s how this works.
Jordan’s ownership also means he gets to pick the replacement. It’s surely not a coincidence he’s leaning toward Mitch Kupchak (who played at North Carolina) and Buzz Peterson (who played with Jordan at North Carolina).
Kupchak fizzled late, but his overall tenure with the Lakers was a success. Has the game passed him by, or did recency bias unfairly paint him unfavorably? We might get to find out.