After an extensive search that saw Michael Winger take charge of Monumental Basketball and Travis Schlenk take over as VP of Player Personnel, the Washington Wizards have their new general manager.
As reported by Josh Robbins of The Athletic, Will Dawkins will be brought on to be the “No. 2 executive” for the Wiz. Another big move for a franchise looking to break the cycle of mediocrity.
The Washington Wizards will hire OKC executive Will Dawkins as their No. 2 executive, a league source tells @davidlaldridgedc and me.
— Josh Robbins (@JoshuaBRobbins) June 5, 2023
Dawkins has been a leading candidate since Winger took the reins. This likely has something to do with their shared history with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
He was hired by the Thunder back in 2008 as a front office intern, but quickly moved up the ranks. He was directly involved in nearly every draft pick made by the franchise since 2010 when he was named the team’s scouting director.
He leaves his long-term employer as Vice president of Basketball Operations and based on the wording of the report, will likely be taking over as general manager of the Washington Wizards.
This is a great move as the Washington Wizards are looking for a direction
The biggest problem in the past decade for the Wizards has been their lack of success when it comes to the NBA Draft. Now, with potentially one of the greatest draft classes in NBA history, the Wizards have three elite executives in charge.
Michael Winger, Travis Schlenk, and Will Dawkins have all been directly involved in the drafting of a long list of great players. This includes Trae Young, Jalen Williams, Josh Giddey, and plenty of others.
This is a great move for the Washington Wizards and hopefully it will lead the franchise towards the ultimate goal of an NBA championship.