Washington Wizards: 6 early replacement ideas for team president Ernie Grunfeld

Chauncey Billups

The recent trend of sending former players to the sidelines or front office hasn’t always worked out well in recent years. See Jason Kidd, Derek Fisher, and now Luke Walton.

However, maybe Chauncey Billups could turn that trend around in Washington. While Billups doesn’t necessarily have the front-office resume that most (if not all) other candidates will, his on the court-resume is tough to beat. But basketball skill doesn’t always equate to management skill. See Michael Jordan.

Regardless, Billups has been vocal about wanting the chance to run an NBA team, and interviewed with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2017. His name also came up in rumors when the Detroit Pistons were looking for a new team president in 2018.

Could he finally get his chance with the Wizards in 2019?

Gersson Rosas

As a Darryl Morey-disciple, Houston Rockets vice president of basketball operations Gersson Rosas would certainly bring some analytics credibility to a team that was shooting a lot of mid-range jumpers and deep-two pointer’s just a couple seasons ago. So that’s a plus.

He also has experience managing a G-League farm system, so player development, evaluation, and roster construction should be strengths. In just its first year, the Wizards leaned heavily on their G-League affiliate, the Capital City Go-Go, to help Jordan McRae and Troy Brown Jr while they struggled to find minutes.

Also, Rosas has been involved with Team USA Basketball, giving him access to players from across the league and not just the roster’s he’s helped manage in the NBA. Relationships may be more important now than they ever have been in the NBA. Even with tampering rules in effect, access to top level free agent talent could help the Wizards land a star.

Rosas served as the Dallas Mavericks team president for a very short time in 2013. It’s worth noting that the break up was messy and the result of an internal power dispute.