Even before the Pistons fired Stan Van Gundy as president and coach, speculation centered on Arn Tellem as his successor in the front office. The former agent is already working for the Pistons as Vice Chairman, and he completed his main responsibility of overseeing the team’s move into a new downtown arena.
But don’t expect Tellem to replace Van Gundy.
It is unlikely that a potential Detroit-Barry partnership would be for the role of President of Basketball Operations, league sources tell ESPN. Tom Gores and Arn Tellem are expected to pursue an experienced front office executive to run basketball operations. https://t.co/PO1z2jhYIN
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) May 7, 2018
It’s common for teams to hire the opposite of the person they just fired. Van Gundy had no front-office experience prior to Detroit. Now, the Pistons want someone with it
Among those available who’ve run a front office: David Griffin, Sam Hinkie, Rich Cho, John Hammond, Danny Ferry, Billy King, Glen Grunwald and Donnie Walsh.
Ideally, Pistons owner Tom Gores (probably aided by Tellem) will pick a general manager then let that person choose Van Gundy’s replacement as coach.