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The Detroit Pistons are reportedly interested in hiring Milwaukee Bucks general manager Jon Horst as the team’s new president of basketball operations, according to Eric Nehm of The Athletic.
Nehm noted that the Pistons “may not” choose to lure Horst away from Milwaukee, although they’re expected to ask for permission to interview the general manager after the Bucks’ season ended on Thursday night.
Horst has two years remaining on an extension that he signed in Oct. 2021.
While Detroit has operated without a president of basketball operations since 2018, it recently became clear the team was changing directions.
After the Pistons wrapped up a dismal year by finishing with a league-worst record of 14-68, Shams Charania of The Athletic revealed that the organization would begin the search for a new president on April 15.
Although general manager Troy Weaver and head coach Monty Williams are expected to remain with the team, they’ll operate under the incoming top executive, according to Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press (h/t Yahoo Sports).
Horst took over as general manager of the Bucks in 2017, winning the 2019 NBA Executive of the Year award. He helped build a Milwaukee roster that won a championship in 2021, making key free-agent additions such as Brook Lopez and Bobby Portis to complement superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Horst also has previous experience with the Pistons, briefly serving as Detroit’s manager of basketball operations from 2007 to 2008 before heading to the Bucks.
Milwaukee will be thorough in its search for a president of basketball operations, with NBA insider Marc Stein reporting on Tuesday that former shooting guard and current ESPN analyst JJ Redick is “a name to monitor in Detroit in the event he has any interest in a move to basketball operations.”
Horst also appears to be a top candidate for the role.