'I'm Thankful for Tim Fuller': Dennis Gates Appreciative of New Mizzou GM

Missouri's newest front office addition is already aiding the program in major ways.

June 14, 2025; Columbia, Missouri, USA; Missouri men's basketball general manager Tim Fuller during his introductory press conference at Mizzou Arena. | Joey Van Zummeren, Missouri On SI

The Missouri Tigers made multiple flashy and important additions throughout this most recent offseason, but no move was arguably more important than general manager Tim Fuller.

Fuller has been a huge help to what head coach Dennis Gates is looking to do at Missouri. There's plenty behind the scenes that Fuller has contributed to, which may not even be public knowledge, but Gates is clearly appreciative of the impact he's had so far.

"I'm thankful for what Tim Fuller has brought to our program, to our team," Gates said following Missouri's pro day on Saturday. "I'm thankful with how our players have responded, but I'm thankful to be the head coach here at Mizzou.” 

READ: What to Expect from Tim Fuller as Mizzou Basketball's General Manager

Fuller's history as both a coach and an executive has proved useful early on in his time at Missouri. There have been plenty of opportunities for Fuller to show off some of his front office skills.

NIL has already been a large part of what Fuller works with in terms of dealing with the players. He's been able to merge his skills in that field with the ability to incorporate brand deals and more, along with creating fan opportunities.

"What he has traditionally done when you look at his background, whether he's working with Nike, whether he's being a full-time assistant, whether it's being an interim head coach, whether it's being an executive at Overtime Elite, he's done this at a magnitude where branding meets, name, image, and likeness, name, image, and likeness and branding meets [our] current team, and that helps facilitate drive ticket sales, that drives fan engagement," Gates said.

The whole point of adding administrative roles to Missouri's basketball program was to relieve some duties from Gates. In some ways, it has helped him out. In other ways, he's still extremely busy.

There's still plenty that Gates has to do outside of his role as the head coach. That includes recruiting and some aspects of management, but the presence of Fuller and other administrators has taken a load off of what Gates would normally be doing.

“It never gets easy," Gates said. "I still have to lead and manage and do so, but these guys lift the load off my shoulders, where I can fully concentrate in and invest in what I need to invest in when these details come out of need."

It may be indirect, but there has been an increase in recruiting wins since Fuller arrived. It's likely he's had an impact in that department, but the overall presence of Missouri's athletic department, and its success, has helped with those recruiting wins as well.

"I'm excited to be a part of this athletic department because when you can bring recruits on campus to watch a football game, when they start to talk about, hey, you're a gymnastics finished in the top, right of the country, or even your volleyball team is elite," Gates said. "That gives us an identity across the grid nationally and internationally, and I want that to always carry you."

Fuller was hired by the University of Missouri into the general manager position on June 1, 2025. He has a deep coaching history, along with administrative work at Nike and Overtime Elite.

The Tigers kick off their schedule on Nov. 3 against the Howard Bison on the road in Washington D.C.