When it comes to having success in the NBA, the common belief is that all it takes is the right two or three superstar players, but in reality, there is a whole slew of factors that go into the equation. After all, the NBA front office needs to create an appealing environment if they ever want to attract the stars that appear to be a prerequisite for winning a ring in the modern NBA.
Let’s take a look around the NBA at the five best and worst executive teams out there.
Which NBA front office are doing well and which ones are not?
Best – Miami Heat
Under Pat Riley’s leadership, the Miami Heat have developed one of—if not the—best front office in the NBA. The legendary NBA player, then coach, turned into one of the best player personnel evaluators and deal makers that the league has ever seen. He sets the tone for the entire organization and has put a number of extremely talented people in a position to excel within his regime.
The Pat Riley era in Miami has been marked by stability, a hard work-oriented culture, and a team-first mentality commonly referred to as “Heat Culture” that has resulted multiple championships and a perennial contender down in South Beach. The players deserve their credit—no doubt—but the sustained success that Miami has experienced through a series of roster turnovers has to be attributed primarily to the NBA front office folks pulling the string behind the scenes.
Worst – Brooklyn Nets
The Brooklyn Nets front office has gotten more than its fair share of flack over the years for the high-stakes moves they’ve made that, well, haven’t exactly panned out the way that they initially hoped. Granted, some of the ill-fated decisions have been under different leadership, but the most recent slew has been particularly disastrous. Especially when you juxtapose it to the expectations that they had for the deals. The supposed “Big 3” of Kyrie Irving, James Harden, and Kevin Durant barely played together during their time in Brooklyn—and though the Nets were one toe on the line away from making an NBA finals that was as good as it ever got for that group.
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The time since has been even worse. They sold off their stars for scraps and now the Nets are looking like a true nightmare—and there is no indication that anything will change any time soon.
Best – Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics are to the NBA what the New York Yankees are to MLB. At least historically speaking. They are the franchise that when you turn back the clock was winning all the rings and, well, just doing things differently from the rest of their peers.
While they had their struggles in the early 2000s, the legacy of one of the NBA’s premier franchises was been completely restored. Obviously, they had the Big Three era with Paul Pierce, KG, and Ray Allen, but this version of the C’s front office has done a heck of a job home-growing talent instead. Over the past couple of seasons, they have had talent all over the roster with the likes of Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum—not to mention a number of extremely talented role players a la Derrick White and Payton Prtichard.
Heading into 2024, their NBA front office shook the dust off the old trade machine and made some major acquisitions ahead of the season bringing in Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday. Now it feels like it is only a matter of time until Boston is title town once again and the C’s are NBA champions—thanks to the efforts of its phenomenal front office.
Worst – Portland Trailblazers
After over a decade of facing scrutiny for their inability to build a legitimate championship contender around Damian Lillard, who was one of the best scorers in the league for quite some time, they finally gave in and parted ways with their star, sending him off to Milwaukee, where he may very well achieve his ambition of winning a ring while playing alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Whether it was questionable trades or terrible free-agent signings, they never could seem to put the right supporting cast around Lillard. Now, they are sitting way below .500 right near the bottom of the table with no sign of things turning up in the near future from their NBA front office. It will take a serious strike of good fortune through the draft for them to get the train back on the tracks.
Also read: All 32 NBA Teams’ Biggest Point Guard Busts Of All-Time
Best – Minnesota Timberwolves
The Denver Nuggets have been one of the more consistent NBA franchises over the last decade under Tim Connelly, but the front office, hence the public’s shock when Stan Kroenke let him walk to Minnesota, where they reportedly doubled his salary.
Connelly didn’t waste much time making an impact in Minnesota, as the team has skyrocketed, currently toggling back and forth with the Denver Nuggets for first place in the West. Meaning that the two teams that he built are at the top of the most competitive conference in pro sports—not bad!
After a couple of seasons of sputtering despite the talented cast in Minnesota, the Timberwolves now look like they mean business, largely because Connelly has done such a great job of finding the right complementary pieces to build a supporting cast around Karl-Anthony Towns and Anthony Edwards. Whether Minnesota is ready to make a legitimate title run or not remains to be seen, but there is no denying that they are headed in the right direction under this group’s leadership.
Worst – Chicago Bulls
Oh, how the mighty have fallen… I mean, assuming they were ever mighty—and not just fortunate for backing into one of the greatest players of all time in the draft, but I digress!
Ever since the Michael Jordan era came to an unceremonious end, the Chicago Bulls have been an unbridled disaster in their NBA front office. They have—rightly so, I might add, faced intense criticism over its decisions ever since, particularly regarding its inability to build a competitive team around key talents. Whether it was trying to build around Zach LaVine while putting him on a salary cap-prohibitive monster deal or trying to turn things around with acquisitions like Otto Porter Jr., there has been no shortage of blunders that they’ve made.
Best – Denver Nuggets
Even if Tim Connelly, the executive responsible for drafting the likes of two-time MVP Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr., is out of town, it would be a mistake to exclude Denver from the list of the league’s top executive groups. Frankly, the Nuggets haven’t missed a beat since Calvin Booth was promoted to General Manager upon Connelly’s unceremonious departure. His early decisions to trade longtime Nuggets, Will Barton III and Monte Morris, was a tough choice but one that was quickly vindicated by the team’s success the following season.
Not to mention the Aaron Gordon acquisition, which was highly scrutinized at the time, but pivotal in their run to the championship last year. Make no mistake about it—the Nuggets front office is still among the tops in the league—with or without Tim Connelly.
Also read: Here’s Why Everyone Always Has A Problem With All 30 NBA Teams
Worst – Los Angeles Lakers
Calling the Los Angeles Lakers one of the worst front offices is a little bit of hyperbole in some ways, as they have managed to make some pretty impressive moves in recent years, first luring LeBron James to town, then acquiring Anthony Davis.
But we have to remember… This is the Los Angeles Lakers we are talking about. And with the way the clout and history of that franchise, the expectations are—and should be different.
They have had two of the best players in the league in the aforementioned James and Davis and only managed to have one super competitive season. Granted, they did manage to win the NBA Championship that year… But then their NBA front office went and made a mess of the roster the following offseason. When you are the L.A. Lakers—you need to do better than what Jeanie Buss and co. have brought to the table.
Best – Oklahoma City Thunder
When most NBA fans think of what a great front office looks like—Sam Presti and the rest of the crew in Oklahoma City are surely one of the first to come to mind. Unfortunately, it still hasn’t resulted in a title, though they were dangerously close back in the Durant, Westbrook, and Harden days…
That said, when you have a record in the draft like Presti does—and have created a team that is perennially competitive out of a market as small as Oklahoma City—you deserve all of the credit in the world.
Worst – Dallas Mavericks
While the Dallas Mavericks have managed to climb back up to the middle of the pack in the competitive Western Conference standings this season—they aren’t exactly the gold standard when it comes to an NBA front office. Never mind their horrendous workplace scandal a few years back (which, admittedly was during the Mark Cuban days), but there always seems to be chaos swirling in the Big D.
The Mavs have done a good job of finding and acquiring talent, but they’ve also made some very questionable personnel decisions like letting Jalen Brunson walk a couple of years back. It is hard to imagine this team becoming a legit contender again until they get their operations upstairs straightened out again.
Also read: All 30 NBA Teams’ Mount Rushmore…Which 4 Players Made It For Your Favorite Team?
