Grizzlies are losing an important front-office member to the 76ers

A title heavyweight team from the Eastern Conference is reportedly luring away one of the important members of the Memphis Grizzlies this summer.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, the Philadelphia 76ers are bringing in Memphis Grizzlies executive Ariana Andonian at their side to serve as their newest Vice President of Player Personnel.

Andonian's background as basketball executive

Andonian joined the Grizzlies back in 2020 to serve as their Senior Manager of Personnel. After two seasons, she got promoted and assumed the franchise's Director of Player Personnel.

A talented basketball mind, Ariana got included by The Athletic’s Mike Vorkunov’s NBA ‘40 under 40’ list this summer which honors successful and promising young coaches, front office members and agents across the Association. Andonian gets consistent praise for her hard work, dedication, and scouting emphasis.

“Those who worked with her rave about her attention to detail and scouting acumen,” Vorkunov wrote of Andonian.

A significant factor that perhaps motivated Ariana to land in Philly is her close ties and familiarity with 76ers president Daryl Morey. The female executive worked under Morey as a Scouting Coordinator for the Houston Rockets for three years.

Following her time with the Rockets, Andonian briefly worked for the NBA within its International Basketball Operations. She also served as a Player Personnel Consultant for the Duke Blue Devils from 2018 to 2020.

Hoping for the best in Ariana's new chapter

Losing a vital presence will always be bittersweet for a franchise. Nevertheless, we can only hope for the best in Andonian’s new endeavors outside of Memphis as she played a major role in the Grizzlies ascension from a rebuilding team into one of the league's best.

Ariana’s departure marks another significant development on the organizational changes within the Grizzlies this offseason. Earlier this summer, general manager Zach Kleiman notably took a major shake-up on the team's coaching staff, hiring six new assistants for head coach Taylor Jenkins.

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