Advertisement - scroll for more content
Aaron Rose: The Raptors have announced their summer league roster including Gradey Dick, Ochai Agbaji, Ja’Kobe Walter, Jonathan Mogbo, Jamal Shead, and Ulrich Chomche pic.twitter.com/iQrreNqd6O
The Raptors have announced their summer league roster including Gradey Dick, Ochai Agbaji, Ja’Kobe Walter, Jonathan Mogbo, Jamal Shead, and Ulrich Chomche pic.twitter.com/iQrreNqd6O
— 𝐀𝐚𝐫𝐨𝐧 𝐑𝐨𝐬𝐞 (@AaronBenRose) July 7, 2024
Khaman Maluach, the projected third pick of the 2025 NBA Draft, will play in this season's Basketball Africa League (BAL) for Uganda's City Oilers, while potential 2024 first round pick Ulrich Chomche will represent Rwanda's APR. ESPN has seen a document, confirmed as legitimate by multiple NBA sources, containing the destinations for 12 standout NBA Africa Academy players in this year's BAL Elevate program. The 7-foot-2 South Sudan center Maluach, who has visited Duke, Kentucky, Kansas and UCLA, will play his final BAL season for the Oilers.
Rich Cho broke down racial barriers in 2010 when he was named the general manager of the Portland Trail Blazers, the first Asian American to be hired in that role in the NBA. “The past year has been such a sobering time in the area of racial injustice, particularly as these issues affect the black community and now as incidents rise against Asian Americans,” Cho, who is currently the Memphis Grizzlies VP of basketball strategy, told Yahoo Sports. “Hate crimes and hate speech are things so cruel and reprehensible, yet they occur almost daily. Many of these attacks never even make the news, but they still happen. We cannot let this behavior ever become normalized.”
Cho, 55, says regardless of race, ethnicity and gender, we as a people have an obligation to speak up, embrace racial equality and condemn violence. “The events of the past year have also brought a renewed energy toward openly advocating for racial justice among many groups,” Cho told Yahoo Sports. “While there is still much to be done, I’m encouraged by the outpouring of support across the country from allies who have condemned hate against Asian Americans. As an Asian immigrant and proud father of two young daughters, I’m reminded every day that we have an absolute duty to stand up against any and all forms of racism.”
Advertisement
While Houston’s future with the organization seems safe, the rest of the front office is mostly in flux. According to a source, the Knicks hoped to hire Grizzlies executive Rich Cho but that’s now off the table. Word is Cho is happy in Memphis, where he serves as the vice president of basketball strategy for a franchise on the rise that features Ja Morant.
The GM is a crucial part of the plan, given that Rose has no experience actually running a franchise, and names have begun to flicker through the rumor mill. Artūras Karnišovas’ name has been floated by multiple sources, but the Nuggets’ general manager signed a contract extension last summer and the Knicks would need permission to speak to him and possibly compensation to obtain him. An SNY report said some around the league believe long-time Hornets GM Rich Cho is under consideration.
Denver Nuggets Artūras Karnišovas name has been floated by multiple sources, although he signed a contract extension last summer and the Knicks would need permission to speak to him and possibly compensation to obtain him. An SNY report said that some around the league believe long-time Charlotte Hornets GM Rich Cho is under consideration.
Since we're still days - weeks? - away from Rose starting, it's too early to concretely state which coaches or executives will be joining Rose's Knicks. But one name that several opposing execs expect to get consideration is Rich Cho. Cho, currently an executive with the Memphis Grizzlies, is believed to have a solid relationship with Rose. That's one reason why those opposing execs see Cho as someone to keep an eye on when it comes to potential additions under Rose.
Advertisement
After being fired by the Hornets in February of 2018, Cho had been taking some time to experience life in many forms. He started a food blog, became one of the better pickleball players in the world in his age group, and consulted for an NBA team. Interestingly, that NBA team was the Memphis Grizzlies. “I had done some part-time work for the Grizzlies during the season, just studying the league and best practices around different teams, starting last September, I started looking around the league, analyzing every team in a number of different categories.”
Cho’s role will encompass many areas of the front office. “I’ll be involved in a lot of different aspects of basketball operations,” Cho said. “I’ll be overseeing analytics, all the salary cap administration, and I’ll be advising on player personnel issues, any type of player acquisitions.”
One area in which Kleiman and Cho share a true passion is analytics. “The goal is to be one of the top analytics organizations in the league,” Cho told The Athletic. “There are a number of ways you can do that. I’ve learned a lot of things along the way and I hope to implement a lot of them in Memphis, to take us to a point where we can say we’re one of the leaders across the league in not just analytics but a lot of different sectors of basketball operations.”
Omari Sanfoka II: Can confirm @Adrian Wojnarowski's report. Grizzlies have hired Rich Cho as VP of Basketball Strategy and Glen Grunwald as Senior Advisor. Cho and Grizzlies VP of Basketball Operations Zach Kleiman have a long-standing relationship dating back to 2012.
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement