Phones no longer vibrate, even in the middle of the night. For a week now, Adrian Wojnarowski retired as a journalist, and while he probably got the news before anyone else, he didn't tweet about Derrick Rose leaving the Grizzlies or Vince Carter being retired by the Raptors. On Wednesday, “Woj” held his first press conference as GM of St. Bonaventure University.
“This time of year at ESPN, someone invariably asks me where I’ll be when NBA training camps open. This year, I was asked if I wanted to be in Boston with the defending champion Celtics. Did I want to be in Los Angeles with the Lakers and LeBron? Or maybe I wanted to go to Oklahoma City to watch the best youth team in the world, or maybe I just wanted to be in the studio with my friends Malika Andrews and Stephen A. Smith.” says Adrian Wojnarowski. “I thought about this question for several months, and I finally found an answer: I want to be in St. Bonaventure on the opening day of practice.”
At 55, Adrian Wojnarowski warns that he has retired as a journalist, but he is not a retiree. For him, he has lost nothing by writing off $20 million. “I'm retired from ESPN and the media industry, but this isn't a retirement job for me. I just feel like I've gained something, and I don't feel like I've given up anything.”
Sponsors are pouring in!
“Rookie” in this role of recruiter in NCAA, he sees similarities with his job as a journalist. “I have to learn, and I hope that some of my skills will allow me to develop relationships and maintain them. Nobody gives you good players, just like nobody gives you good articles… You have to fight for them, and you have to earn them.” he continues, before mentioning the NIL system which allows players to be paid.
“To recruit really good players and retain what they already have, we need the NIL. I have worked with the coach and his staff for a few years on this important project. Since our announcement last week, I have been absolutely blown away by the opportunities that are coming our way from national sponsors and entities that want to partner with Saint-Bonaventure basketball. Opportunities that are game-changing and that help us recruit and retain our student-athletes.”
