Blazers To Hire Cavs’ Andrae Patterson As Assistant GM

Trail Blazers interim general manager Joe Cronin intends to hire Andrae Patterson as assistant GM, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

Patterson, 46, currently holds the position of senior director of basketball operations with the Cavaliers. A former second-round draft pick out of Indiana, he appeared in a combined 40 games with the Timberwolves from 1998-2000.

Prior to working alongside Cavs president of basketball operations Koby Altman, Patterson spent four years in the Jazz’s front office. Patterson has been part of a front office in Cleveland that has overseen a return to competitive basketball throughout the first half of the season.

Meanwhile, Cronin took over the fired Neil Olshey earlier this season and as Wojnarowski relayed, this is Cronin’s first front-office addition of significance. The move is a good sign that Trail Blazers ownership is considering Cronin for the job on a full-time basis.

Cronin has said he has been given the green light to run the team as he sees fit, admitting that the Blazers have been active in trade talks ahead of the Feb. 10 deadline to make a deal.

“I like this hire, Patterson is well-liked within the league,” wrote The Athletic’s John Hollinger, a former member of the Grizzlies’ front office. “Patterson-Cronin frontcourt can also crush most of the league’s other FOs in pick-up.”