Jeff Peterson looking to build ‘sustainable success’ with Hornets

Jeff Peterson looking to build ‘sustainable success’ with Hornets

All right Jeff thank you so much for being here we appreciate it just taking the time out it it is officially announced the Executive Vice President of basketball operations for the Charlotte Hornets congrats once again has it settled in no it has not it has not um it’s been a whirlwind these past

Uh 48 72 hours but I can’t tell you how excited I am so thank you for welcoming me and um I’m just yeah I’m excited to get get to work the city already seems like they’re buzzing with excitement too take us back through just the interview

Process though and how you kind of got to where we are now yeah I um you know obviously whenever Rick and Gabe decided to uh to open the position up um it’s one of those things where I I got a call from actually my former boss in in in

Brooklyn Shawn Marx um who’s tremendous and he just said listen they they they would like to inter interview you for the uh position excuse me um and ask if I’d be interested and of course having the pre-existing uh relationship with Rick helped um to want to go through

That process and you know I think they did an incredible job obviously I wasn’t in the other interviews but they had some really really good candidates um so I knew I was up up up against some good competition uh but I just try to control

What I could control and do my best in you know every setting that I was presented in front of them and now I’m here yeah you spent time with the Hawks organization and the Nets has this kind of been a goal for you or what what has

Been your goal um just heading into this career that you’ve chosen you know what it’s funny I I never sought out to be a GM or um you know the lead decision maker or anything like that I just I always wanted to I just look at as I’m

Privileged to be associated with the game I love so at at whatever position so you know every day I was just like look how can I help the team I’m on get better um and whatever that meant if it’s the smallest task to ordering coffee and lunch when I was intern to

Helping making you know some more um key bigger decisions u in my role now but um I’m just thankful I just try to put the work in every day and then now I look up and I’m I’m sitting here so and you clearly just love the game of basketball

Just so people maybe know a little bit more about you grew up in Missouri played basketball college basketball at a couple different stops can you kind of let people know maybe you got to even starting in basketball for sure I um I started playing when I was five my uh my

Dad put the ball in my hands and um it was a little bit frustrating at first cuz I was I was always playing up so I stunk um and it was it was very frustrating but you know I think uh it it showed me a lesson of just having some perseverance

And continue to put the work work in and um it paid off and was fortunate to receive um scholarship for college um so I played at yeah a couple different schools and maybe didn’t take the most conventional path in college but ironically I think it’s it’s helped me

In in my position today we saw you thank your parents in the introductory speech um I’m sure they had such an intergral part in where you are would you say you know your dad putting the basketball in your hands at 5 years old kind of started the passion for the

Sport absolutely um that that that helped and then just I love to compete I love to be active so it just it started with with that for sure and then just being around different people and challenging different people and then the amount of sacrifices that that both

Of them have made um for me growing up um yeah just there’s no way I would be in this seat today and Jee there’s no denying a lot of the headlines talk about your age you’re obviously one of the younger ones um for your position which is amazing and such a great

Accomplishment you should be so proud but for you what’s kind of been some of the the keys just to be able to be so successful um at such a young age I I give so much credit just to people who are around me um whether that was when I

Was growing up family members friends um and then of course just the people in the Hawks organization and the Nets organization they’ve they’ve done so much to to help develop me um and prepare me for this opportunity so I think again I try to treat people the

Right way um um I know that we’re all humans and we all need one another in some capacity and um just continue to show up and put the work in and not get caught up with all the the other things that sometimes you know life can throw

Things out your way and distractions can get in the way but I just try to keep my head down and continue to put the work in keep doing what you’re doing it’s obviously working great for you let’s talk a little bit about the Hornets um a lot of rosters obviously have like a

Core group of guys and they kind of build around just for the Hornets who would you say maybe are those core guys that just looking to continue to build yeah I’m excited about the entire roster I think with you know obviously starting with some of the younger guys and

Brandon and lamelo and Mark and Miles um some really really talented pieces but then you also have a good mixture of vets and Davis and Seth and Vasa Grant um and then some other developmental pieces you know down towards the end of the roster but um I’m excited you know I

I I was able to come in for shoot around yesterday and one of the first things I said to to Rick and Gabe just noticing that they like to be around each other there’s a there’s a connect connectivity there which quite frankly that’s not always the case um in NBA locker rooms

And NBA rosters but I think uh those guys are trying to do it the right way um and compete which I which I love I I’ve said the same thing before too just hearing you know from other people and just other franchises it is rare just how much that they truly enjoy being

Around each other so it’s definitely a positive for the development of of lamelo ball and Brandon Miller specifically how important is you know this offseason heading into your first full season at this position it’s huge it’s it’s everything luckily those guys want to be great so I know they’re going

To put the time in but I I think it’s important that we provide a structure as well to see where they you know where they can be and I don’t want to put a Silling on either one of those guys you know I I have no good idea how good they

Can be I know the sky is the limit for them though um they both have tremendous uh work ethics and just skill sets um that really are are required in today’s NBA so um being able to you know kind of focus on from a skill standpoint how

They can get better but also from a physical you know they’re both young um you know so physically they can continue to mature and get better from that standpoint as well but I’m excited to see what what this summer looks like yeah it’s going to be a big summer for

Sure your relationship with one of the owners Rick you guys go way back I think Rick said a decade or so um just for you know you and Rick and Gabe what is that partnership like how much are you guys going to lean on each other during these

Decisions you have to make yeah no it’s a great question I think that’s the only way I like to work I when I’m not smart enough or good enough to do it myself I so I uh I love collaboration um I love to quite frankly disagree with people

And have those those uh conversations and and um cuz I think that’s how you get to the right decision um I think we all have different perspectives but if you’re open-minded and you take the time to try to see it from the other person’s perspective um you can maybe learn

Something so um there’s no doubt in my mind that that Rick and Gabe are going to be tremendous Partners um but I’m also excited to lean on the rest of the basketball operation staff yeah um because I know I’m GNA need them as well obviously you’re a huge basketball fan

But are you a huge sports fan in general are there I mean football baseball what else do you do you like absolutely I’m I’m anything I can compete in I love it so it actually you know it’s kind of you guys say I’m young I feel like sometimes

I’m old so now I’m Into Golf and Tennis now yeah golf tennis pickle ball um so yeah okay yep that leads into my next question is there any other organization it could be you know one in the NBA or any other franchise as well that maybe

You want to kind of mold after what what they’ve done to build their franchise yeah I think look I’m so fortunate to have these different stops that I’ve been at so whether it was Iowa Arkansas Florida State even going back to high school dtha Catholic High School um and

Then of course Atlanta and Brooklyn and being able to take some things that I like uh from each stop and create you know create our own Vision here and and Implement some things you know in that way I think you know the ultimate goal again is to have sustainable success so

When you look at a franchise like the the Patriots um more recently the Chiefs um you know I think they again they’ve done it the right way they’ve built the right way they haven’t skipped steps they didn’t try to take shortcuts so that’s uh that’s what i’ would like to

Implement here and you coming in with the final couple weeks of the season I know you were saying that you feel really fortunate because you’re able to evaluate the team as opposed to coming in in the off season um what was your message maybe to the guys when you first

Met them or just you know moving forward for these final 20 games of the Season what you want to see from them I you know I I I met with them yesterday game day for the first time I you know they they were um all in the in the theater

And was able to spend some time with them and I kept it pretty brief because I I didn’t want to interrupt their interrupt their pregame nap so I just said listen guys I want us to continue to compete play the right way and then use these you know use these 2021 games

To get better um how can we get better individually uh collectively um so that that’s all I ask and we’ll continue to evaluate from there sure you’ve seen a lot of fan bases as well and I know you’re very new to Charlotte but just maybe even talking with Rick and Gabe do

You see kind of where the passion comes with Charlotte and you know their desire to want a successful franchise like this does that excite you as well absolutely it’s one of the you know reasons I took the job just this fan base is incredible you I’m fortunate to go to different NBA

Cities and and watch games and I’ve always thought Charlotte had a an amazing um following and and not just Charlotte quite frankly the Carolinas in general just the love the passion um the uh the Loyalty uh of the fan base is something that really excites me and

Last question for you Jeff when you think back to yourself 5 10 years ago and now to see where you are now I mean did did you ever think that this would be where you are no again cuz I I it wasn’t like a goal of mine I just I I

Really try to take it a day at a time so much can change in life um at one at one moment so no if I’m being honest I didn’t think of like oh I’d be sitting here uh in this position today but I’m again I’m incredibly thankful for for

The everyone who’s helped me uh along this journey yeah thank you Jee we appreciate we’re really looking forward to it of course thank you thank you yeah that’s a great answer okay um all right Jee just with your stops along the way is there maybe a philosophy that you

Live by or that you like to implement in your work yeah I think a couple things I you know for me it’s just taking it a day to time um I think life has these crazy twists and turns that you don’t anticipate and sometimes when you’re

Looking too far ahead in advance you um you know it takes away from the present so I just try to take it a day to time and um the other thing is just look we’re all fortunate to be in this business um in some capacity whatever

That is so you know we’re going to take the job serious we’re going to put the time in but we can’t take ourselves too serious so um you know I’ll be there’ll be some pranks played and we’ll have a have a lot of fun uh in the office

Because it’s again it’s it’s something that I think we should all be um fortunate that that we’re here you’re a jokester I love it quietly quiet Joker that’s awesome yeah thanks Jeff of course of course you’re welcome

New Charlotte Hornets EVP of basketball operations Jeff Peterson sits down with Ashley ShahAhmadi to discuss his plans for the franchise’s future.

#charlottehornets #nba #basketball