Timberwolves' Steve Senior turned down big role with Lakers
The Lakers continue to look to fill key positions in their front office in an effort to modernize their operations.
Over the last several months, the Los Angeles Lakers have started to revamp their front office after Mark Walter purchased a majority share of the franchise. Walter is reportedly looking to structure the Lakers' front office after the front office of the Los Angeles Dodgers, a team he has owned since 2012, and he has started by bringing in some key people from the two-time defending World Series champions. Lon Rosen was hired to be the Lakers' new president of business operations, while Andrew Friedman and Farhan Zaidi, who have played big roles in the Dodgers' rise to the top over the years, have been working in advisory roles.
In the coming weeks, the Lakers will be looking to hire two assistant general managers to assist general manager and president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka with specific tasks. Yaron Weitzman revealed in a recent article for Yahoo Sports that the team offered Steve Senior of the Minnesota Timberwolves the role of executive vice president of basketball operations, only for him to turn it down. "Around February, Zaidi started placing calls to agents representing front office and medical personnel to inquire about their clients," Weitzman wrote.
"Around three months later, the Lakers offered Steve Senior, an assistant general manager for the Minnesota Timberwolves, the job of executive vice president of basketball operations. Senior, who declined to comment, decided to remain with the Timberwolves, according to multiple league sources. " Senior had worked in player development for the Memphis Grizzlies and the New York Knicks before Minnesota hired him to be an assistant general manager in 2022.
He has continued to focus on player development in that role with Minnesota, and during that time, the team has gone from mediocrity to back-to-back Western Conference finals appearances in 2024 and 2025 and a second-round appearance this season. Since hiring JJ Redick to be their head coach in 2024, the Lakers have been placing more of an emphasis on developing young players on both their NBA and G League rosters. This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Timberwolves' Steve Senior turned down big role with Lakers