CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Charlotte Hornets officially announced the hiring of Jeff Peterson as executive vice president of basketball operations on Tuesday.
Peterson, who had been serving as the Brooklyn Nets‘ assistant general manager, replaces longtime NBA executive Mitch Kupchak, who is moving into an advisory role with the Hornets. Peterson will be introduced at a news conference on Wednesday at the Spectrum Center.
Hornets co-owners Rick Schnall and Gabe Plotkin said in a joint news release that Peterson shares their vision, values and goal of becoming the premier franchise in the NBA.
“Jeff is a rising star in our league who is known for his player evaluation, his communication skills and his ability to develop strong relationships,” Schnall and Plotkin said in the release. “His experience of having worked with multiple organizations and different general managers will be a great benefit to us. We look forward to working with Jeff as we continue to build our team and we want to welcome him to Charlotte.”
Peterson has his work cut out for him.
He inherits a Hornets team that is headed toward its eighth straight non-playoff season, the longest drought in the NBA. Charlotte is 15-46 entering Tuesday night’s game against the Orlando Magic and recently traded away P.J. Washington, Terry Rozier and Gordon Hayward in three separate moves prior to the deadline.
The 35-year-old Peterson comes to the Hornets after four-plus seasons with the Nets, where he played a key role in several player acquisitions, including signing Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving as free agents, trading for James Harden, Mikal Bridges and Cam Johnson, and drafting Cam Thomas and Nic Claxton.
Peterson oversaw Brooklyn’s college scouting department and added the team’s pro scouting department to his responsibilities in the past two seasons.
“I believe in their vision of building the premier franchise in Charlotte,” Peterson said. “Establishing a winning culture will take hard work, creative ideas and a collaborative approach, and I’m excited by the challenge ahead. The Carolinas are basketball country and Hornets fans are some of the most loyal in the NBA. I look forward to being a part of this community and experiencing that passion.”
Peterson spent seven years with the Atlanta Hawks, where Schnall was a former minority owner.
He started his career as seasonal basketball operations assistant in 2012 with the Hawks and after one season was promoted to coordinator of basketball operations before moving up to director of scouting in 2015 and then assistant general manager at the age of 27.
Peterson played college basketball at Iowa, Arkansas and Florida State.