“This was an unfortunate setback for Isaiah, but with his resolve and the top care he will receive from our medical team, we expect him to make a full recovery,” said Wizards General Manager Tommy Sheppard. “In the meantime, he will continue to mentor our young guards and have a positive impact on the team as we start training camp.”
Tommy Sheppard Rumors
For now, newly appointed Wizards GM Tommy Sheppard is committed to keeping Beal in Washington. “The way that I look at this is pretty simple: If you were looking to build a team, Brad would be the type of player anyone would want to start with,” Sheppard told CBS Sports. “You look at the character, the talent, the age, just the whole package … Brad is without a doubt a core player in this league. Every team would love to have him, and we do.”
Tommy Sheppard: “So we’ve never considered anything other than a situation where Brad is with us and leading us forward. We made that clear to him on the first day we could offer him an extension, and we’ll continue to make that clear.”
“Rui is a generational talent for that country, and he will bring enormous attention to the sport,” said Wizards general manager Tommy Sheppard, who spent two weeks in Japan and China bonding with his first draft pick as the head of the team’s basketball operations. “He’s going to be a fantastic player for the Wizards in the future. He has the ability to be a factor at both ends of the floor, [has] a solid basketball IQ and is a great teammate.”
Tommy Sheppard is in Shanghai for the group stage of the FIBA World Cup to watch Rui Hachimura and Team Japan take on a tough Group E, a field that includes the Czech Republic, Turkey and the United States. It’s an unusual move, one that certainly isn’t expected out of someone running the entire basketball operations for an NBA team.
The Washington Wizards announced today that they have named Johnny Rogers vice president of pro personnel. “Johnny brings tremendous global experience, vast NBA knowledge and great basketball relationships to our franchise,” said Wizards General Manager Tommy Sheppard. “He is universally respected as a player and executive.” Rogers comes to Washington after spending the last three seasons as director of pro personnel for the Los Angeles Clippers. In this new role, he will oversee NBA and NBA G League scouting as well as the team’s international scouting efforts. Prior to joining the Clippers, Rogers served as a scout for the Oklahoma City Thunder and Sports Director for Valencia Basket in Spain.
“Coach Brooks and I worked closely to pinpoint what areas we needed to improve and identify the best candidates, both internally and externally, to make the appropriate changes,” said Wizards General Manager Tommy Sheppard. “We’re very confident that we have a strong staff in place that is in line with the vision we have for our rebuilding our culture and focusing on the overall development of our players.”
