What does a general manager in college basketball do? Butler is about to find out.

Coach Thad Matta reached out to Tony Bollier in April about a new position on the Butler basketball staff. It was shortly after the Final Four and the conclusion of Bollier’s season as an assistant coach for the G League.

Butler was adding a general manager position, and after seven years within the Milwaukee Bucks’ organization, Bollier fit the bill.

“We had a great connection when we started talking, and it seemed like we were sort of on the same page,” Bollier told IndyStar about how he and Matta connected for the job.

Bollier is now Butler men’s basketball’s general manager and director of player development, the university announced last week.

The general manager role is a new one in college basketball. Duke’s men’s program was the first to add one in 2022. Now, several programs of all sizes have added one to their staff.

College athletics are changing rapidly, and college coaches have to handle more than ever before. With the in-and-out nature of the transfer portal and NIL’s influence, college sports are becoming even more like the pros. A general manager like Bollier can help head coaches maneuver these new responsibilities that didn’t exist in past decades of the NCAA.

Bollier comes to Indianapolis after seven years with the Bucks. The Leo, Ind., native joined Milwaukee as the director of basketball operations in 2017. He won the 2021 NBA championship as a front-office member. Bollier worked as the general manager of the G League Wisconsin Herd for two years before becoming a Herd assistant for the 2023-24 season. Now in the college ranks, Bollier said he feels what he did in the NBA will be an advantage.

“I think it’d be a great opportunity to sort of use what I’ve done in the NBA and apply a good bit of that to how we’re working and operating this new landscape.”

It’s been a decade since Bollier worked in college basketball. After graduating from Wheaton College in Illinois, Bollier was the director of basketball operations for the 2011-12…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/does-general-manager-college-basketball-083142540.html

Author : IndyStar | The Indianapolis Star

Publish date : 2024-07-15 08:31:42

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