Jameer Nelson promoted to Delaware Blue Coats general manager
Jameer Nelson promoted to Delaware Blue Coats general manager originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
Jameer Nelson has taken a step up in the front office world.
The Sixers announced Friday morning that Nelson has been promoted to general manager of their G League affiliate, the Delaware Blue Coats. Nelson’s prior roles were Blue Coats assistant GM and Sixers scout.
Prosper Karangwa, who’d been serving as both Delaware’s GM and the Sixers’ vice president of player personnel, will now focus solely on the Sixers.
“Jameer has approached his front office and scouting roles with the same tenacity that he approached the game during his playing career,” Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey said in a press release. “He is a great talent evaluator who is well-respected by players, agents, coaches and executives alike, suiting him for success as the next General Manager of the Blue Coats.
“Jameer succeeds Prosper Karangwa, who led the Blue Coats to their first-ever G League title last year and has done an incredible job in growing the program. We are thankful to Prosper for what he's done in Delaware and are grateful he's an integral member of our 76ers front office."
Shortly before the Sixers brought in Morey to lead basketball operations, Sixers general manager Elton Brand hired Nelson.
“With Jameer, I’ve been watching him closely the last few years, end of his career,” Brand said on Nov. 2 of 2020. “Very talented, well-respected in the Philadelphia area and our community. So I wanted to see what he wanted to do. He’s the type of person that you get him in a role ... and he will succeed at it. So I wasn’t sure whether he wanted to be a coach. We had a few breakfasts and lunches over the years and I told him, ‘Pick a lane.’ And he decided to pick management.
“Getting an opportunity in the G League to cut his teeth … and he’s also going to be a scout because he has an eye for talent, working through the Philadelphia and Chester area for many years. The goal for him is to be in management, so he will grow there. I have no doubt he’ll be successful and bring a lot to our organization.”
Several months prior, Nelson had been enjoying his work as an in-studio college basketball analyst for CBS Sports.
“It keeps me around the game, and it challenges me,” Nelson told NBC Sports Philadelphia in March of 2020. “When I do decide to coach or become a GM or whatever in the front office, I won’t be left behind. I’m still involved.”
Brand soon swayed Nelson to pick the Sixers’ lane.
A Chester native, Nelson led Saint Joseph’s to an undefeated regular season and Elite Eight run 20 seasons ago. The 6-foot floor general then played nearly 900 games in the NBA.
The Blue Coats will begin their 2023-24 campaign under new head coach Mike Longabardi on Friday night when they host the Westchester Knicks. Longabardi’s assistant coaches are Ryan Ayers, God Shammgod Jr. and JP Clark, the Sixers announced.
The Sixers' two-way contract players — guards Terquavion Smith, Ricky Council IV and Javonte Smart — are all with Delaware for opening night.