Trail Blazers Elevating Joe Cronin From Interim To Full-Time GM

The Trail Blazers are promoting interim general manager Joe Cronin to the position on a full-time basis, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

Cronin reportedly will receive a four-year contract.

Cronin stepped in for Neil Olshey, fired in December after being investigated for workplace misconduct. Cronin immediately began to reshape the roster, with his most notable move being the one where he sent guard CJ McCollum to the Pelicans ahead of the February trade deadline.

As Wojnarowski noted, Cronin “takes over franchise at a pivotal offseason and has vowed to continue building around Damian Lillard.”

The Blazers missed the playoffs after qualifying for eight straight years, but Cronin said after the season he envisions the team bouncing back in 2022-23.

“We want to win,” he told reporters. “We want to be really competitive next year.”

Cronin was promoted to assistant GM in 2016 and has been with the Blazers 16 years overall in various basketball-related roles. 

“Cronin’s strong relationship with first-year coach Chauncey Billups played a significant part in the franchise’s belief that there will be a philosophical alignment moving them forward together in basketball operations,” Wojnarowski wrote.

The Blazers enter the NBA Draft Lottery, scheduled for May 17, with the sixth-best odds of winning the No. 1 overall pick.