Weisbrod to step down as GM By Brian Schmitz Sentinel Staff Writer May 22, 2005, 10:13 PM EDT In a stunning development, John Weisbrod will step down as general manager and chief operating officer of the Orlando Magic, National Basketball Association sources told the Sentinel today. An announcement could come as early as Monday. Weisbrod's surprising decision to leave comes as the Magic prepare to name a head coach within the next few days. Flip Saunders, Brian Hill and Eric Musselman are considered the front-runners among the final candidates. President Bob Vander Weide will oversee the club's coaching search and the overall basketball operations, with input from Otis Smith, director of player development, and Dave Twardzik, director of player personnel. "They all have been involved in the coaching search from the beginning," said an NBA executive. "From what I've heard, they are close [to naming a coach]." The NBA executive, who asked not to be named, said that it was Weisbrod's decision to leave the Magic. He will not be involved in preparations for the upcoming June 28 draft. Weisbrod did not return calls from the Sentinel. Just when Weisbrod made his decision to resign is not clear, but there were rumblings last week concerning his future. Asked Wednesday by the Sentinel if there was a major development involving him, Weisbrod, via a text message, indicated he planned on remaining the general manager. Weisbrod, who succeeded John Gabriel as GM in March 2004, could be considering a front-office position in the National Hockey League, according to NBA sources. A labor dispute caused the NHL to lock out its players and cancel the 2004-05 season. Weisbrod, a former hockey player in the San Jose Sharks organization, served as general manager and vice president of the Orlando Solar Bears of the International Hockey League from 1997-2000. The defunct Solar Bears were owned by Rich DeVos, who owns the Magic. Weisbrod said he had not been contacted by the Anaheim Mighty Ducks after the Boston Globe mentioned him in April as a prospective candidate for their general manager position. Weisbrod, a Harvard graduate, was named chief operating officer of RDV Sports in March 2000, his duties including management of basketball operations and player personnel. Weisbrod told the Sentinel in February that he had surrendered some of his responsibilities as COO to Jim Fritz, the executive vice president of finance and business operations. With his hockey background and blunt, often controversial demeanor, Weisbrod was a surprise choice to lead the Magic. At 36, he became one of the youngest executives in pro sports. Shortly after replacing Gabriel as general manager, he made swift, bold and hotly debated moves to rebuild the Magic after their league-worst 21-61 record. He brought in 11 new players and made three major trades. A believer in team chemistry and dynamics, Weisbrod clashed with star guard Tracy McGrady, who asked to be traded near the end of the 2003-04 season. Weisbrod dealt McGrady, forward Juwan Howard, guard Tyronn Lue and guard Reece Gaines last June to the Houston Rockets for point guard Steve Francis, guard Cuttino Mobley and center Kelvin Cato. Weisbrod made it clear that McGrady was not his kind of player, and the two exchanged barbs after the deal. Later in the summer, Weisbrod then sent forward Drew Gooden and rookie forward Anderson Varejao to the Cleveland Cavaliers for center/forward Tony Battie. In January, Weisbrod traded Mobley to the Sacramento Kings for guard Doug Christie. Although the Magic predicted they would make the playoffs, they collapsed down the stretch and finished 36-46. They will participate Tuesday night in the NBA draft lottery, which decides the drafting order of the 14 non-playoff teams. Smith and Twardzik, according to league sources, are considered as candidates to replace Weisbrod as general manager. When asked about his future during a Q&A in April, Weisbrod said, "I don't think about my future. I'm sort of unorthodox when it comes to career stuff. People think that I have this master plan to take over the world, this Harvard guy wanting to climb the sports ladder. "Anyone who knows me knows that's not the case. All I aspire to do is whenever I get out of the shower in the morning, I'm fired up about where I'm going."
Good for Orlando. Now they can get a competent GM that can build around Howard and Francis, and maybe get Grant Hill back into the playoffs as his career winds down. This should be a lesson to the rest of the NBA. Don't let a dumbass that knows as much about the NBA as the average fan run your front office. We should all send him a card saying "Thanks for Mcgrady. Good luck saving the NHL!". Obviously the Mighty Ducks looked at his stellar job in Orlando in their decision to look at him.
Wow, I can't even possibly imagine the torment Magic fans must be going through with this announcement.
I guess the BBS was correct in predicting Weisass leaving the Magic by the offseason. Just too many mistakes in a rather short period of time (one year). His short stint in the league will provide a good handbook for future hopefuls on what "not" to do as a rookie NBA GM
[Sentinel] Weisbrod to step down as GM Couldn't endure the heat. Decided to step out of the kitchen. http://www.orlandosentinel.com/spor...305,0,3518431.story?coll=orl-sports-headlines
HAHHAHA...we should all send him a sincere thank you note for helping out the rockets during his tenure
Fool..... By the way, thanks for T-Mac, we'll be tittle contenders here in H-Town for the next few years, and O-Town won't even sniff the 1st round. Wiea$$ said that Tmac doesn't make his team better, so he traded him away for another player that doesn't make his team better.....nice.
Dude was an ass, so good riddence. I can almost sympathise with his desperation Mc Grady trade, but trading Cat for Christie was too stupid to live down.
boy, magic fans must be thrilled he hung around just long enough to piss off their superstar and trade him out of town. and then he traded one of those pieces for nothing. maybe someone who doesn't think the world is against him and thinks he knows everything will actually be able to do a decent job. howard plus francis is something worth salvaging at this point instead of trading francis for 50 cents on the dollar. hopefully it works out for them and for hill.
Good news for SF. I couldn't blame T-Mac either if he's gloating inside. But I am surprised. I'm also happy almost everyone here saw Weisbrod going down after the T-Mac trade. I guess "his type of guy" just aren't NBA players.
The guy made 3 bad trades in less than a year...what a dumbass. Glad he's gone, now TMac can officially give him the finger.
