MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - Memphis owner Robert Pera says he made changes in the Grizzlies' front office this off season to make sure the organization is headed in the direction he wants it going.
Pera discussed his decision to keep Chris Wallace as his general manager along with other moves in the shake-up Friday during a press conference. It was just his fourth press conference with local reporters since taking over the Grizzlies as controlling owner in November 2012. He covered a variety of topics in a 30-minute session.
The front-office changes started in mid-May when he fired CEO Jason Levien, who help broker Pera's purchase of the franchise, and assistant general manager Stu Lash. Pera said the franchise had to "put in place a strategy to get us closer to the goal of winning the championship" and said the front office moves should aid in that pursuit.
"I'm perfectly fine on being judged on the results good or bad, and I'm confident the moves we are making now are going to put us in position to achieve some things we haven't achieved before," Pera said. "So let's just see how things play out, and let's draw conclusions from those results."
Pera said the decision to retain Wallace, whose role had been reduced under Levien, was an easy one because the general manager is straight forward with lots of integrity. Multiple candidates were considered and interviewed, but Pera said Wallace remained the best man for the job.
"When you are looking at this team in Memphis, I think you've got to look at the general manager in two respects. One is the basketball performance. The other I've learned with Memphis the past couple of years is this idea of community involvement. And everybody loves Chris in Memphis. He is a special person for the Memphis community."
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Pera discussed his decision to keep Chris Wallace as his general manager along with other moves in the shake-up Friday during a press conference. It was just his fourth press conference with local reporters since taking over the Grizzlies as controlling owner in November 2012. He covered a variety of topics in a 30-minute session.
The front-office changes started in mid-May when he fired CEO Jason Levien, who help broker Pera's purchase of the franchise, and assistant general manager Stu Lash. Pera said the franchise had to "put in place a strategy to get us closer to the goal of winning the championship" and said the front office moves should aid in that pursuit.
"I'm perfectly fine on being judged on the results good or bad, and I'm confident the moves we are making now are going to put us in position to achieve some things we haven't achieved before," Pera said. "So let's just see how things play out, and let's draw conclusions from those results."
Pera said the decision to retain Wallace, whose role had been reduced under Levien, was an easy one because the general manager is straight forward with lots of integrity. Multiple candidates were considered and interviewed, but Pera said Wallace remained the best man for the job.
"When you are looking at this team in Memphis, I think you've got to look at the general manager in two respects. One is the basketball performance. The other I've learned with Memphis the past couple of years is this idea of community involvement. And everybody loves Chris in Memphis. He is a special person for the Memphis community."
bit.ly/UNkvRT
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