Warriors name Mike Dunleavy Jr. as general manager to replace Bob Myers
The Golden State Warriors found their replacement for Bob Myers among one of their own.
The team promoted team executive Mike Dunleavy Jr. to Myers' old post of general manager, the team announced Friday. Dunleavy originally joined the Warriors' front office as a pro scout in 2018 after 15 seasons as a player in the NBA. The Warriors promoted him to assistant GM in 2019 and he became vice president of basketball operations in 2021.
Dunleavy spent almost all of the first five seasons of his playing career with the Warriors after Golden State drafted him No. 3 out of Duke in 2002. He was traded to the Indiana Pacers in 2007. Dunleavy finished his career with averages of 11.2 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game.
“We think Mike is the perfect fit to lead our basketball operations department,” Warriors co-executive chairman and CEO Joe Lacob said in a statement. “He has a wealth of basketball knowledge, stemming from his family upbringing, a 15-year NBA playing career and five seasons serving under Bob Myers in our front office. He’s young and energetic, has established numerous relationships around the league and communicates well with players and coaches — all important traits in this business. Mike’s ready for this challenge and responsibility.”
Vice president of basketball operations Kirk Lacob will also take on a new, to-be-defined role with the team.
Dunleavy had been speculated to be the top candidate for the job when Myers stepped down from his role in May. Myers left the Warriors after 11 seasons and four NBA championships, but the dynastic team appears to be at an inflection point.
The futures of Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Jordan Poole are all uncertain as contract extensions and luxury tax concerns loom large this upcoming season. It doesn't help that the Warriors, who won the 2021-22 NBA title, cratered in the playoffs this past season — beating the Sacramento Kings in a seven-game series and losing to the Los Angeles Lakers in six games.
All this will be for Dunleavy to now navigate. Myers' approach was always to try to keep the team's championship core — Stephen Curry, Thompson and Green — but it's hard to gauge if that approach will be what team ownership wants considering the contractual demands of extensions for Thompson and Green, as well as the impending money owed to Poole in the deal he signed last offseason.
It's Dunleavy's team now, but the Warriors' run could be in question.
