James Jones promoted to President of Basketball Operations, remains General Manager

The Phoenix Suns announced the promotion of James Jones to President of Basketball Operations and General Manager on Monday morning.

That’s the combo title once held by Steve Kerr from 2007-2010, but has not been given as a combo title since. Lon Babby last held the President role, with Lance Blanks and Ryan McDonough the GMs under him. The position has officially remained vacant since 2015, when Babby moved into an advisor role.

Jones is a former Phoenix Sun and was originally named the General Manager in 2019 after being promoted from Vice President of Basketball Operations and interim GM.

Suns Interim Governor Sam Garvin: “In the nearly 15 years I have known James, he has excelled in every role he performed, from player to NBPA Treasurer to his roles in our front office, most recently as general manager. James has the unique ability to create and lead high-performing teams in basketball operations and his commitment to collaborating with our business side, including at the C-level with partners like PayPal and Verizon, is second to none. We are fortunate for his contributions across the organization and this promotion recognizes his commitment to excellence.”

Via the Phoenix Suns press release:

Now in his fourth season as the Suns head of basketball, the successes of Jones and his staff in their first three seasons include an undefeated NBA Bubble run (2020), consecutive playoff berths after a 10-year drought (2020-21, 2021-22), back-to-back Pacific Division titles (2020-21, 2021-22), a single-season franchise-record 64 regular season wins (2021-22), a franchise-record 18-game win streak (2021-22), a Western Conference title (2020-21), and the league’s best record since the start of the 2020-21 season.

Jones was honored as NBA Executive of the Year in 2021.

Jones released this statement upon the news of his promotion:

Jones: “I am grateful for the privilege to work with and support the players, staff and employees of the Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury. The collective efforts of our business and basketball operations have allowed us to provide an amazing atmosphere and best-in-class experience for our fans and community. I remain excited about and dedicated to driving success for our Teams on and off the court.”

This is the first significant personnel move by Suns’ Interim Governor Sam Garvin since Sarver’s suspension earlier this year.