Jeff Bower (basketball)

Jeff Bower (born April 26, 1961, in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania) is the former general manager of the New Orleans Hornets and held the head coaching position during most of the 2009–10 season. He held the GM position twice (in 2002–03 and from 2005–10).

Hornets general manager

Bower helped rebuild the Hornets, despite the troubles Hurricane Katrina placed on the club and the city of New Orleans in general. He took a giant step in re-writing Hornets history by trading franchise piece Baron Davis to the Warriors, then selecting guard Chris Paul fourth overall in the 2005 NBA Draft. The disaster Katrina caused forced the Hornets to move to Oklahoma City until the 2007–08 NBA season, but Bower continued to build his club. Through trade, draft, and signings, the Hornets actually competed in their two seasons in Oklahoma with a 38–44 record in 2005–06 and 39–43 in 2006–07. Yet again, another series of trials and tribulations, the Hornets improved and contended. Injuries to Paul (for 18 games), Peja Stojakovic (for sixty-nine), and scoring big man David West (for thirty) dampened the opportunity to make the playoffs.

For 2007–08, the Hornets came back home to open arms. They broke out, with the dangerous roster of Tyson Chandler (whom Bower traded for in 2006 for J.R. Smith), Paul, Stojakovic, West, and new acquisition Morris Peterson (from Toronto), with pieces like 3-point specialists Rasual Butler and Jannero Pargo (the former acquired in a 2005 trade, the latter left prior to the 2008–09 NBA season) and rebounders Melvin Ely and Ryan Bowen; and developing youth such as Julian Wright and Hilton Armstrong (both draft picks of the Hornets). The general of it all was Coach of the Year Byron Scott prior to the 2004–05 NBA season, and the Hornets won 56 games, their first divisional title, and were labelled "contender" by many analysts.

In fact, Bower's performance in spearheading the Hornets from lottery team to contender gave him 12 votes from the sportswriters for the Sporting News NBA Executive of the Year, behind Lakers' GM Mitch Kupchak and winner, Boston Celtics' Danny Ainge.

Bower has been with the organization for 14 years, beginning in 1995–96, director of scouting, director of player personnel, as a scout, GM (in 2002–03), and assistant to former coaches Paul Silas and Tim Floyd. He also was an associate coach at Marist College from 1990–95, prior to that, being an assistant in both Marist and Penn State University.

Hornets head coach

On November 12, 2009, Bower was made the head coach of the team after the firing of Byron Scott. He led the team to a 34–39 record despite injury problems in the team. At the end of the season, he stepped down from the coaching duty and returned to his position as a general manager.

He was replaced by Monty Williams

Bower and the Hornets parted ways on July 13, 2010.

Family and personal

Bower currently resides in New Orleans with his wife, Lisa and their daughter, Lindsey, born in January 2003. He holds a bachelor of arts degree in history/education from Saint Francis University in Pennsylvania.

Sources

• Hornets: 2008-09 Media Guide
• Danny Ainge wins Executive of the Year
• Monroe: Hornets equipped to survive West Grind
• Know Thy Enemy: New Orleans Hornets

References

Preceded by Byron Scott

New Orleans Hornets head coach 2009–2010 (interim)

Succeeded by Monty Williams