Report: Hawks Losing Important Member of Front Office To The Chicago Bulls

According to multiple reports, the Bulls are hiring Atlanta Hawks senior vice president Bryson Graham as the franchise's new Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations,

Sep 30, 2024; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans general manager Bryson Graham takes part in Pelicans Media Day at the Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images | Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

The Atlanta Hawks front office has become highly regarded in the last year with the hire of Onsi Saleh as the general manager and the subsequent hires of Bryson Graham (formerly with the Pelicans) and Peter Dinwiddie (formerly with the 76ers) to assist him. According to multiple reports, Graham is going to be leaving the Hawks to become the Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations for the Chicago Bulls.

Just in: The Chicago Bulls are hiring Atlanta Hawks senior vice president Bryson Graham as the franchise's new Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations, sources tell ESPN. Graham spent 15 years in New Orleans before joining Atlanta last offseason, rising from an intern… pic.twitter.com/IyolFrnMGl

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“I am incredibly honored to join the Chicago Bulls organization,” said Graham. “This is one of the most storied franchises in the history of professional basketball, and I feel a tremendous sense of responsibility to deliver results for this city and these fans. My entire career has been built on the belief that sustained success starts with finding the right players and developing an all-around impactful culture. I want to thank Jerry and Michael Reinsdorf and the entire Bulls organization for presenting me with this opportunity. I am ready to get to work.”

How big of a loss is this?

Graham has been known around the NBA as a strong talent evaluator and is well respected. He is not going to be an easy person to replace in the Hawks front office.

Graham came to the Hawks after spending the previous 15 seasons with the New Orleans Pelicans, most recently serving as the team’s general manager during the 2024-25 campaign. He joined the Pelicans as a front office intern during the 2010-11 season, rising through the ranks, eventually serving as player development director (2011-12), video coordinator/player development coach (2012-14), scouting coordinator (2014-17), director of college scouting (2017-19), and assistant general manager (2019-24).

A 2009 graduate of Texas A&M University, Graham played on the Aggies men’s basketball team from 2006-09, leading the team to the 2007 Sweet Sixteen and the second round of the 2008 and 2009 NCAA Tournament. Following his graduation, the San Antonio, Texas, native returned to Texas A&M to serve as a graduate assistant on the men’s basketball team.

Saleh had this to say about Graham after he was hired last summer in Atlanta:

“We are fortunate to be able to add Bryson and Peter to our leadership team. Bryson is widely regarded as one of the league’s top young talent evaluators and Peter is one of the most strategic minds in the NBA. Ownership has empowered me to build a robust and dynamic front office, and adding two extremely talented, experienced and respected executives in Bryson and Peter is a home run for our group,” said Hawks General Manager Onsi Saleh.

Will the Hawks move quickly to replace Graham? The good news is that they have a strong front office already in place with Saleh, Dinwiddie, and Kyle Korver. Still, with the NBA Draft Lottery ahead on Sunday and the draft next month, losing Graham could prove to very pivotal.

Saleh has done a great job guiding the Hawks through the past year, from the draft night trade with the Pelicans that could net the Hawks the No. 1 pick in the upcoming draft to signing Nickeil Alexander-Walker, who won the NBA's Most mproved Player Award. Losing Graham is not ideal, but the Hawks should be fine overall.