LINKS: Wizards Tap John Thompson III to Lead Athlete Development

Former coach of the Georgetown Hoyas, John Thompson III, is taking on a new role within the Washington Wizards’ organization that includes leading a new athlete development and engagement department. His title will be “Vice President of Player Development/Engagement.”

With the job’s apparent focus on developing player “wellness” and an opportunity to stay in D.C., this sounds like a perfect fit for Coach Thompson.

Here are some more links:

PRESS RELEASE: Trio of sports industry innovators to lead Monumental Basketball | NBA.com

New structure to include athlete engagement/development team led by John Thompson III and Sashia Jones

WASHINGTON, DC – Chairman and CEO of Monumental Sports & Entertainment Ted Leonsis announced the leadership team for Monumental Basketball, a newly-formed collective that includes the Washington Wizards, Washington Mystics, Capital City Go-Go and Wizards District Gaming. Tommy Sheppard will serve as general manager of the Wizards, Sashi Brown will serve as chief planning and operations officer for Monumental Basketball and Daniel Medina will serve as chief of athlete care & performance for Monumental Basketball.

“We have formed a new leadership team with a forward-thinking structure to adapt to the ‘new NBA’ that requires every possible strategic advantage to compete and win,” said Leonsis. “We are building a leadership brain trust with deep Wizards/NBA experience and with sports professionals from inside and outside the NBA to challenge our thinking and adapt to an ever-increasing competitive environment.” ...

As part of the new organizational structure, Leonsis also announced a new athlete development & engagement department which will be led by former Georgetown and Princeton Head Coach John Thompson III. Thompson will use his vast experience to lead a team that will focus on maximizing player potential both on and off the court for all Monumental Basketball athletes. Employing a holistic development approach, the department will focus on financial literacy, post-playing career opportunities and the overall empowerment and development of the athletes...

John Thompson III brings a vast array of experience to Monumental Basketball, including 13 years (2004-2017) as head coach at iconic Georgetown University in Washington, DC.

Thompson arrived at Georgetown with a unique pedigree as the son of one Hall of Fame coach and the student of another, having played basketball for the legendary coach Pete Carril as an undergraduate at Princeton University. He achieved several coaching milestones, including an NCAA Final Four appearance, two NCAA Sweet-16 appearances, three Big East regular season championships and one Big East tournament championship. In his four years as head coach at Princeton, Thompson won three Ivy League championships. Overall, he owns a stellar 346-193 (.641) all-time record and was named Big East Coach of the Year (2013), NABC Coach of the Year (2007) and was a two-time recipient of the Black Coaches Association (BCA) Male Coach of the Year.

Following his tenure at Georgetown, Thompson continued his path as a stalwart in basketball, serving as an analyst for ESPN and an assistant coach for the USA Men’s National Team (where he assisted head coach Jeff Van Gundy as the team qualified for the 2019 FIBA World Cup). He also served on the Commission on College Basketball (established by the NCAA Board of Governors, Division I Board of Directors and the NCAA president and chaired by former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to fully examine critical aspects of Division I men’s basketball) and was the recipient of the 2019 Guardians of the Game Award for Service, presented by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC).

Off the court, Thompson has been an active member of his community. His greatest contribution was establishing the John Thompson III Foundation in 2007 to create a positive and lasting impact on the city he cherishes, Washington, DC. He currently he serves on the boards of his alma mater, Gonzaga College High School, the NABC and the non-profit, Men Against Breast Cancer.

Ex-Georgetown coach John Thompson III, ex-Browns exec Sashi Brown join Wizards’ front office | CLUTCHPOINTS

Leonsis also announced the creation of a new athlete development and engagement department, which will be led by Thompson, who is expected to help maximize player potential on and off the court for all Monumental Basketball athletes. The collective is hoping to develop a holistic development approach, which can help athletes hone into financial literacy along with post-playing career opportunities and their overall empowerment and development.

Wizards hire Sashi Brown as senior vice president in front office shakeup | NBCSports Washington

The Wizards will launch youth basketball initiatives, hoping to connect communities between the NBA, G-League, high schools and local leagues. Part of the thinking is the potential long-term benefits when the NBA Draft expands to include high school players. Wizards and Bullets alumni will be involved with those efforts...

The Wizards’ front office will now more closely resemble that of the Clippers and Raptors, which have larger staffs with specialized titles. There will be front office additions announced at a later date as the Wizards beef up their scouting and analytics departments. Leonsis envisions more communication between the front office and ownership within this new dynamic.

Wizards Hire John Thompson III To Run Athletic Development & Engagement Department | REALGM

Thompson will use his vast experience to lead a team that will focus on maximizing player potential both on and off the court for all Monumental Basketball athletes. Employing a holistic development approach, the department will focus on financial literacy, post-playing career opportunities and the overall empowerment and development of the athletes.

Chasing Ghosts: John Thompson’s roots still run deep at Georgetown | ESPN (July 9, 2019)

John Thompson III (2004-17), 278-151 (.648), 8 NCAA tournaments, 1 Final Four (2007) -- The second Thompson era at Georgetown had exhilarating highs -- the 2007 team, led by Green and Hibbert, got the program to the Final Four for the first time in more than 30 years -- but frustrations around the program began to pile up in a way that Thompson couldn’t survive.