Jeff Weltman is an American

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

executive who is the president of basketball operations for the

Orlando Magic The Orlando Magic are an American professional basketball team based in Orlando, Florida. The Magic compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The franchise was establ ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...

(NBA). In 2020, Weltman received one 1st place vote for

NBA Executive of the Year The National Basketball Association's Executive of the Year Award is an annual award given since the 1972–73 NBA season, to the league's best general manager, president of basketball/business operations, or another high-ranking executive. Befor ...

Early life and career

Weltman grew up in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. He was raised by his father, Harry Weltman, and his mother, Arlene. Harry Weltman was a former GM for the now defunct ABA's

Spirits of St. Louis The Spirits of St. Louis were a basketball franchise based in St. Louis that played in the American Basketball Association (ABA) from 1974 to 1976. This was the third and last city of a franchise that had begun as a charter member in 1967 as the ...

in the mid-1970s and for the

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers (often referred to as the Cavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

and New Jersey Nets in the mid-1980s. As a teenager, Weltman played pick-up basketball in the

South Bronx The South Bronx is an area of the New York City Borough (New York City), borough of the Bronx. The area comprises neighborhoods in the southern part of the Bronx, such as Concourse, Bronx, Concourse, Mott Haven, Bronx, Mott Haven, Melrose, B ...

and

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...

on Saturdays. Weltman played basketball at

Oberlin College Oberlin College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college and conservatory of music in Oberlin, Ohio. It is the oldest Mixed-sex education, coeducational liberal arts college in the United S ...

in Ohio. At the start of Weltman's career, he was hired by the Clippers as a video coordinator in the late 1990s. Weltman then served as the director of player personnel with the

LA Clippers The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division in the league's Western Conference. The Clipper ...

, director of basketball administration with the Detroit Pistons, assistant GM with the

Denver Nuggets The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team was founded as the D ...

and

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded in 1968 ...

and EVP of basketball operations and GM with the Toronto Raptors. Before Weltman joined the Raptors, the Raptors were on a five-year playoff-drought. During Weltman's four-year tenure with the Raptors, the team qualified for the postseason every season and won three playoff series.

Orlando Magic

On April 13, 2017, The Magic fired GM

Rob Hennigan Rob Hennigan (born March 26, 1982) is an American basketball executive. He is the former general manager of the Orlando Magic. Hired at age 30, he was the youngest GM in the NBA at the time of his hire. Hennigan is a native of Worcester, Massachu ...

and assistant GM Scott Perry following a five-year playoff drought. In the seasons leading up to these events, the Orlando Magic were unfortunate in the NBA draft lottery and decided to make short-sighted trades with the hope to overcome their postseason losing streak. On May 22, 2017, the

hired Raptor's GM Jeff Weltman as the new president of basketball operations, and the Orlando Magic announced they would give up their less desirable 2018 second-round NBA draft pick to the Raptors as compensation. Around this time, the Orlando Magic had promising young talent with

Aaron Gordon Aaron Addison Gordon (born September 16, 1995) is an American professional basketball player for the Denver Nuggets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played one year of college basketball for the University of Arizona before bein ...

, Elfrid Payton and

Nikola Vucevic Nikola () is a given name which, like Nicholas, is a version of the Greek ''Nikolaos'' (Νικόλαος). It is common as a masculine given name in the South Slavic countries (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, North Macedonia, Monteneg ...

. In the

2017 NBA Draft The 2017 NBA draft was held on June 22, 2017, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players. ...

, the Magic selected

Jonathan Isaac Jonathan Judah Isaac (born October 3, 1997) is an American professional basketball player for the Orlando Magic of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for one season for the Florida State Seminoles. Isaac ...

with the 6th pick. In May 2018, the Magic added new coach

Steve Clifford Steven Gerald Clifford (born September 17, 1961) is an American basketball coach who is the head coach of the Charlotte Hornets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He has previously served as the head coach of the Orlando Magic. Early ...

to a four-year deal. Weltman said "Steve is widely regarded throughout the NBA community as an elite coach and developer of players at all stages. His teams have always been disciplined and prepared and have embraced the concept of playing for each other.” In the

2018 NBA Draft The 2018 NBA Draft was held on June 21, 2018, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting amateur United States college basketball players and other eligible players, including inte ...

, the Magic selected

Mohamed Bamba Mohamed Karlakwan Damala Bamba (born May 12, 1998) is an American professional basketball player for the Orlando Magic of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Texas Longhorns. He was highly regarded by ...

with the 6th pick, and

Melvin Frazier Melvin Jamon Frazier Jr. (born August 30, 1996) is an American professional basketball player for the Westchester Knicks of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Tulane Green Wave. Early life Frazier attended L. W. Higgins High ...

with the 35th pick. Following the

2018–19 Orlando Magic season The 2018–19 Orlando Magic season was the 30th season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA). On April 12, 2018, the Magic fired head coach Frank Vogel after the team missed the playoffs. On May 30, Steve Clifford was name ...

, Weltman re-signed

Terrence Ross Terrence James Elijah Ross (born February 5, 1991) is an American professional basketball player for the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Washington Huskies, where he was a first-tea ...

and Michael Carter-Williams and acquired

Al-Farouq Aminu Al-Farouq Ajiede Aminu (born September 21, 1990) is a Nigerian-American professional basketball player who last played for the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He plays internationally with the Nigeria national basketba ...

. In the

2019 NBA Draft The 2019 NBA draft was held on June 20, 2019. It took place at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting amateur United States college basketball players and other eligible players, i ...

, the Magic selected

Chuma Okeke Chukwuma Julian "Chuma" Okeke (born August 18, 1998) is an American professional basketball player for the Orlando Magic of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Okeke played college basketball for the Auburn Tigers before being drafted 16th ...

with the 16th pick. In the

2020 NBA Draft The 2020 NBA draft was held on November 18, 2020. The draft was originally scheduled to be held at Barclays Center in Brooklyn on June 25, but due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it was instead conducted at ESPN's facilities in Bristol, Connecti ...

, the Magic selected

Cole Anthony Cole Hinton Anthony (born May 15, 2000) is an American professional basketball player for the Orlando Magic of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the North Carolina Tar Heels. Listed at and , he plays t ...

with the 15th pick. In 2021, Weltman said the group is confident that

Markelle Fultz Markelle N'Gai Fultz (born May 29, 1998) is an American professional basketball player for the Orlando Magic of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Washington Huskies before being selected by the Phila ...

and

will fully recover from their injuries but the current situation is a "toxic brew". Under Weltman's leadership, the Magic moved

Evan Fournier Evan Mehdi Fournier (; born 29 October 1992) is a French professional basketball player for the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played junior basketball at the French INSEP academy from 2007 to 2009. Early life F ...

, and

(who requested a trade) in three separate deals at the 2021 trade deadline, acquiring three future first-round picks, Gary Harris, an expiring contract in

Otto Porter Otto Porter Jr. (born June 3, 1993) is an American professional basketball player for the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Georgetown Hoyas and was selected with the third overall ...

, as well as Wendell Carter and R.J. Hampton. With the absence of those veteran players, young talent such as

and Dwayne Bacon would be given more minutes to showcase their skills. Weltman said "Anytime you trade a player like

, it is a tough decision to make...Vooch' will go down as one of the best players to ever wear a Magic uniform". On April 8, 2021, Weltman announced the Magic waived Khem Birch who is an unrestricted free agent following the 2020-21 season. On April 12, 2021, Weltman announced the Magic signed free agent Robert Franks to a 10-day contract. On April 13, 2021, Weltman announced the Magic waived

Karim Mané Abdoul Karim Mané (born May 16, 2000) is a Senegalese-born Canadian professional basketball player who last played for the Delaware Blue Coats of the NBA G League. He grew up on the South Shore of Montreal and played for Vanier College in Saint- ...

after signing a two-way contract on November 27, 2020. On April 16, 2021, Weltman announced the Magic have signed guard

Devin Cannady Devin Cannady (born May 21, 1996) is an American professional basketball player for the South Bay Lakers of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Princeton Tigers. Early life and high school career Cannady was introduced to baske ...

to a two-way contract.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Weltman, Jeff Orlando Magic executives National Basketball Association executives Year of birth missing (living people) Living people

Early life and career

Orlando Magic

See also

References