The New York Liberty’s front office transformation continues with the hire of Jonathan Kolb, who previously served in the WNBA league office.
The New York Liberty have announced the hire of a new general manager, adding Jonathan Kolb to the front office.
The team made the reveal in a Thursday statement.
“Ownership is fully committed to establishing the Liberty as a preeminent WNBA organization,” Kolb said in the statement. “I am both excited and honored to be joining such an iconic franchise where we will be relentless in our efforts to deliver a WNBA championship to New York.”
“We are thrilled to welcome Jonathan to the NY Liberty as the team’s new General Manager,” Liberty Alternate Governor Oliver P. Weisberg added. “His basketball IQ, passion and development ideas illustrate why he will be successful in this role and help lead the team into its next chapter of success.”
Kolb has spent the past five years in the WNBA front office. An Arizona native and Arizona State alum, he held several roles with the league. This includes his time as the Director of Basketball Strategy and Analytics. Kolb thus worked the league’s salary cap and contract bargaining agreement compliances. He also helped analyze proposed rule changes and “assisted in the streamlining of the league’s statistical monitoring systems.”
Kolb joins the Liberty at a crucial point on their franchise timeline. The team is coming off a franchise-worst 7-27 record in 2018. However, hope has been a prevailing theme since the team was purchased by Brooklyn Nets minority owner Joseph Tsai. The team still has several free agents to deal with, including veterans Shavonte Zellous, Brittany Boyd, and Kia Vaughn. All-Star Tina Charles was given franchise tag status, however a long-term deal has yet to be worked out.
The Liberty will choose second in the 2019 WNBA Draft in April.
