The
National Basketball Association's Executive of the Year Award is an annual award given since the 1972–73 NBA season, to the league's best
general managerGeneral manager is a descriptive term for certain executives in a business operation. It is also a formal title held by some business executives, most commonly in the hospitality industry.-Generic usage:...
s. Before 2009, the Executive of the Year is presented annually by
Sporting News, although it is officially recognized by the NBA. Since then, the award was awarded by the NBA. Voting is conducted by executives from the league's 30 teams. The person with the most number of votes wins the award.
Since its inception, the award has been given to 27 different general managers.
Jerry ColangeloJerry Colangelo , is an American businessman and sports executive.He formerly owned the Phoenix Suns of the NBA, the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA, the Arizona Sandsharks of the Continental Indoor Soccer League, the Arizona Rattlers of the Arena Football League and the Arizona Diamondbacks of Major...
, the first general manager for the
Phoenix SunsThe Phoenix Suns are a professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association and the only team in their division not to be based in California. Their home arena since 1992 has been the US...
, is the only person to win the award four times.
Bob BassBob Bass is a former basketball coach and executive who worked in the NCAA, American Basketball Association, and the National Basketball Association....
,
Wayne EmbryWayne Richard Embry is a retired American basketball player; a center/forward whose 11-year career spanned from 1959 to 1969...
,
Bob FerryRobert Dean "Bob" Ferry is a retired American basketball player and executive.A 6'8" center from Saint Louis University, Ferry was selected by the St. Louis Hawks with the seventh pick of the 1959 NBA Draft...
,
Stan KastenStan Kasten is the former President of the Washington Nationals and a founding partner of FanDriveMedia. He became president of the Nationals after the ownership group led by Theodore N...
,
Jerry KrauseJerry Krause is a former professional basketball scout and general manager for, among other franchises, the Baltimore Bullets and, most notably, the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association. He is a two-time recipient of the NBA's Executive of the Year award.-Early career:Krause was...
,
Geoff PetrieGeoffrey Michael Petrie is a former American basketball player and current basketball team executive. A native of Pennsylvania, he played professional basketball in the National Basketball Association for the Portland Trail Blazers where he won NBA Rookie of the Year in 1971...
,
Jerry WestJerry Alan West is a retired American basketball player who played his entire professional career for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association . His nicknames include "Mr...
as well as Jerry Colangelo's son
Bryan ColangeloBryan Colangelo is the President and General Manager of the Toronto Raptors of the NBA. He is the son of Phoenix sports mogul, Jerry Colangelo. He attended Cornell University. He was the 2005 and 2007 recipient of the NBA Executive of the Year Award.-Phoenix:Bryan began his NBA front-office career...
have all won the award twice. All of the award winners were born in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The most recent award winners are
Chicago BullsThe Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago, Illinois, playing in the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1966. They play their home games at the United Center...
general manager
Gar FormanGar Forman is an American basketball executive for the National Basketball Association's Chicago Bulls. Forman was named GM in 2009 after being in the organization for 11 years as a scout, director of player personnel, and special assistant to executive vice-president of basketball operations...
and
Miami HeatThe Miami Heat is a professional basketball team based in Miami, Florida, United States. The team is a member of the Southeast Division in the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . They play their home games at American Airlines Arena in Downtown Miami...
president
Pat RileyPatrick James "Pat" Riley is an American professional basketball executive, and a retired coach and player in the NBA. Currently, he is team president of the Miami Heat. Widely regarded as one of the greatest NBA coaches of all time, Riley has served as the head coach of five championship teams...
(whose job includes that of general manager). Riley joins
Red AuerbachArnold Jacob "Red" Auerbach was an American basketball coach of the Washington Capitols, the Tri-Cities Blackhawks and the Boston Celtics. After he retired from coaching, he served as president and front office executive of the Celtics until his death...
as the only recipients to have also received
NBA Coach of the YearThe National Basketball Association's Coach of the Year is an annual National Basketball Association award given since the 1962–63 NBA season. The winner receives the Red Auerbach Trophy, which is named in honor of the head coach who led the Boston Celtics to nine NBA Championships from 1956 to 1966...
.
Winners
| ^ |
Denotes executive who is still active in the NBA |
| * |
Elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame |
| *^ |
Active executive who has been elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame |
| Person (X) |
Denotes the number of times the executive has won the award |
See also
- Sports Illustrated Best GM of the Decade (2009)