Mitch Kupchak, once the long-tenured general manager for the Los Angeles Lakers, may not be done in his career as a front office executive.
He is known for his success at spotting and evaluating talent in the NBA draft (and he was at the 2017 combine doing just that even without a job) as well as his many championship-caliber teams in Los Angeles. Kupchak still brings lots of value to a team despite a messy divorce from the Lakers.
The GM who once landed Pau Gasol from the Grizzlies has recently met with a few professional teams, though it’s unclear if the occasions were just an informal visit.
He may be a candidate for an advisory role, however, for various teams around the league.
Washington Wizards
Ernie Grunfeld, the general manager of the Wizards, is a longtime friend of Kupchak. The two met in 1976 and were also seen together in Las Vegas for NBA Summer League this offseason.
Kupchak played for the Washington Bullets from 1976 until 1981, taking home NBA All-Rookie First-Team honors in 1977 and an NBA title in 1978.
Once the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Player of the Year, Kupchak is originally from the East Coast.
Houston Rockets
During perhaps the most infamous moments in his playing career, Kupchak got in a fight with Hakeem Olajuwon during the 1986 Western Conference Finals.
Olajuwon, a former No. 1 overall pick for Houston, now has a statue outside of the arena for the Rockets. But that didn’t stop Kupchak from meeting up with Houston GM Daryl Morey at a recent practice. Morey and Kupchak have previously worked together on a trade for Jeremy Lin.
Trevor Arizona and Tarik Black are two players on the Rockets who were on the Lakers when Kupchak ran the front office.
Dallas Mavericks
Before he met with either the Wizards or Rockets, Kupchak was spotted at the practice facility for the Mavericks.
Kupchak traded Lamar Odom to Dallas in December 2011 shortly after his attempt to land Chris Paul, which used Odom as a centerpiece, was vetoed by the NBA.
Mavericks owner Mark Cuban once revealed his team nearly agreed to a trade for Kobe Bryant in 2007, which if true, would have been executed by Kupchak.
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