Warriors General Manager and President Operations Bob Myers has stepped down, he told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Myers was the architect behind Golden State’s dynastic run since 2015. Myers used all kinds of methods to get the Warriors built to where they are now.
Like any great general manager in any sport, he used every pathway that was available to him, but the trade market and free agency. Let’s take a look at all of his key moves and accomplishments that got the Warriors to this position as one of the best dynasties of all time.
In the 2014 off-season, Myers and ownership made the controversial move to fire then-head coach Mark Jackson, who had just made the playoffs. Then, he made another decision that was met with criticism from Warriors fans and basketball pundits. He hired Steve Kerr, the former President of Basketball Operations and General Manager of the Phoenix Suns until 2010. Kerr had never been a head coach before. Well. What a home run. Kerr built a revolutionary offense, built around the ridiculous pinpoint shooting of Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, which has since spread all throughout the NBA.
There is no team that doesn’t run some concepts of this offense, and 4 championships later, Kerr is rightfully recognized as one of the best head coaches of all time.
Myers became the General Manager of the team all the way back in 2011. He started off his first draft with a bang, drafting Thompson with the number 11 overall pick. Myers drafted Harrison Barnes and Draymond Green in the following NBA draft. Barnes went on to be a key member of the 2015 and 2016 Finals runs, and Green ended up becoming a staple with Curry and Thompson, forming one of the best trios in NBA history.
Myers went on to draft Kevon Looney in the 2015 draft. Looney went on to become a star in his role and one of the most respected people in the Warriors’ locker room. He also drafted a key member of last year’s championship in Jordan Poole, who was a vital member of the Warriors’ most recent championship.
Myers’ free agency signings also carried the Warriors to becoming a dynasty. Andre Iguodala provided the Warriors with a veteran in a young locker room and an elite wing defender.
Everyone knows about the Kevin Durant signing in the summer of 2016, and what that brought to the team. Key players such as Shaun Livingston, JaVale McGee, Leandro Barbosa, Gary Payton III, Otto Porter Jr, and many more were also signed via free agency.
In the trade market, Myers’ highly controversial at the time Monta Ellis for Andrew Bogut trade in 2012 supercharged Stephen Curry, and Bogut became a key member of the 2015 and 2016 teams. His trade for Andrew Wiggins in 2020 also proved to be a genius move, because the Warriors don’t win the 2022 NBA Championship without him.
More than a decade later? 4 NBA Championships and 6 playoff appearances in 7 years. Myers is no doubt the architect of the Golden State Warriors dynasty and they won’t be the same without him. What will he do next? Only he knows that.
