After 23 years of service in the league,
the former player gets promoted to Executive vice President of Referee Operations.....
Mike Bantom, the former NBA player and executive, has been promoted to the position of Executive Vice President Referee Operations.
The announcement of the promotion was made yesterday by NBA Commissioner David Stern, who praised Bantom of his services to the league.
"Mike has been an invaluable part of the NBA for over 20 years and has excelled in leadership positions across both our domestic and international businesses," said Stern. "That experience, together with his considerable accomplishments
on the court and his respect in the basketball community, make Mike an outstanding choice to lead the NBA's officiating program."
Bantom had been serving as the Vice President of Player Development since 1999. In his tenure, he supervised the Rookie Transition Program, NBA Continuing Education program and the Player Substance Abuse program.
Under his supervision, the NBA took a new direction in its Player Development strategies and started working with athletes, provided them with counselling in handling their off-court business.
From now on, Bantom will be reporting to Joel Litvin and will be overseeing the recruitment and development of all NBA officials. He is expected to take on his new duties immediately.
Prior to being in charge of the Player Development program, Bantom served as the Vice President of Events and Attractions. From joining the NBA as a Licensing International, Bantom had helped the league in spreading to European
countries like Geneva and Switzerland and has helped promote the game of basketball on a global scale.
He also helped organize NBA’s 3 on 3 World Tour and also had major involvement in the leagues tour of Africa in that time. Bantom has also been one of main supervisors in NBA conducted coaching clinics in regions like, Europe,
Asia, Australia, Africa, and South America.
Before his long executive career, Bantom was first round draft by the Phoenix Suns and had an average of 12.1 points and 6.4 rebounds in his career. In his nine years in the NBA, he also played for the Seattle SuperSonics, New
York Nets, Indiana Pacers and the Philadelphia 76ers.
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