Charlotte Bobcats Hire Former Blazers GM Rich Cho

Michael Jordan and the Bobcats made sure that Rich Cho wouldn’t be out of a job for very long, reports the Charlotte Observer: “The Charlotte Bobcats will bring an entirely different perspective to their front office today when Rich Cho is named the team’s general manager. In an exclusive interview Monday with the Observer, Cho and current general manager Rod Higgins confirmed Cho’s hiring. Higgins will be elevated to the title of President of Basketball Operations. Cho, 45, previously was general manager of the Portland Trail Blazers. Cho is known for his eclectic background – he has been an engineer and a lawyer – and his experience in quantitative analysis. Higgins said those are strengths the Bobcats need. ‘He has a unique set of skills that I don’t possess,’ Higgins [said]. ‘His analytical mind is a big plus for us. His legal background is a big plus for us. I’m a traditional basketball guy, and Rich is a very untraditional addition to our operation here.’ Cho became available in late May, after he was abruptly fired 11 months into his tenure in Portland, Ore. It was widely reported there that the breakup was over communication between Cho and owner Paul Allen, and not about Cho’s job performance. While with the Blazers he engineered the deal with the Bobcats that sent Gerald Wallace west.”