In a move shaking up the NBA media world, Adrian Wojnarowski is retiring from ESPN and coming back to help his alma mater. Wojnarowski, ESPN’s senior NBA insider, announced his retirement from journalism Wednesday morning and his next career path: becoming the first general manager of St. Bonaventure men’s basketball.
According to an SBU press release, GM duties at Bona will include a variety of tasks serving the men’s basketball coach staff, from NIL (name, image and likeness) opportunities and working with collectives, transfer portal management, recruiting and relationships with families and player alumni, professional player programs and fundraising. “I’m thrilled and humbled to return to St. Bonaventure with an opportunity to serve the university, Coach Mark Schmidt and our elite Atlantic 10 men’s basketball program,” Wojnarowski said in the release.
“In these changing times of college sports, I’m eager to join a championship program that combines high-level basketball, national television exposure, pro preparation and NIL opportunities with an intimate, supportive educational environment.” The move to add a general manager position follows many power conference schools and some mid-majors, a trend that’s risen since 2022 amid the changing college sports landscape. “I’m hopeful to share with members of our community some best practices learned from the most successful franchises and minds in the NBA and committed to opening doors globally for our players both on and off the court,” Wojnarowski added.
Wojnarowski, a 1991 St. Bonaventure graduate, started his career 37 years ago with his first byline in the Hartford Courant while in high school. He wrote for the student paper The Bona Venture and interned for the Times Herald while at SBU.
He began as a professional columnist at the Fresno Bee in 1995 before joining The Record in New Jersey. Wojnarowski’s profile rose after joining Yahoo! Sports, becoming a major NBA news-breaker — famous for his “Woj Bombs” on Twitter — as well as a columnist. He’d continued on the path as a major voice in NBA media at ESPN since July 2017.
Wojnarowski is a three-time National Sportswriter of the Year (2017, 2018, 2019), as voted by the National Sports Media Association, and New York Times bestselling author of “The Miracle of St. Anthony: A Season with Coach Bob Hurley and Basketball’s Most Improbable Dynasty.” But now, “Woj” has put aside the news breaks and started a different career in basketball.
“This craft transformed my life, but I’ve decided to retire from ESPN and the news industry,” Wojnarowski said in his retirement announcement on Twitter/X. “I understand the commitment required in my role and it’s an investment that I’m no longer driven to make. Time isn’t in endless supply and I want to spend mine in ways that are more personally meaningful.
” New SBU athletic director Bob Beretta called Wojnarowski’s decision an “incredible opportunity” in the press release, not just for the men’s hoops team but the university and athletic department. “At a time of tremendous turbulence within the intercollegiate athletics enterprise, we are making a strong statement that St. Bonaventure continues to be on the forefront of change,” Beretta said.
“This a bold move that aligns with our institutional goals to continue to grow and flourish.” Beretta sees Wojnarowski’s global network of connections as an “invaluable asset.” “Woj is the perfect person to fill this new role, combining his intimate knowledge of St.
Bonaventure and our Franciscan values with a deep network of relationships he has built across the worlds of professional and intercollegiate basketball,” Beretta said. “The fact that the preeminent journalist in his field is willing to walk away from a lucrative media career to serve his alma mater in a support role is a testament to his love and passion for Bona’s.” In the press release, Schmidt called Wojnarowski a “home run” hire.
“This move is critical to navigate the new landscape of college basketball in NIL, recruiting and retention,” said Schmidt, the winningest men’s basketball coach in school history. “Woj is as connected as anyone in the basketball world and his decades-long network of relationships can only help our program remain among the top teams in the Atlantic 10 going forward.” Adrian and Amy Wojnarowski, Class of 1992, are major benefactors for the basketball program and the Jandoli School of Communication.
Wojnarowski signed a contract extension with ESPN in 2022 — and, according to a report from The Athletic, was due to make $20 million over the next three years — but will walk away from it now. He thanked Beretta, Schmidt, university president Jeff Gingerich and “the entire St. Bonaventure community” for welcoming him and Amy back to campus.
“We met on this beautiful campus as undergraduates and have shared a lifelong love with the university that continues now. I’m ready to get to work,” he said. ESPN baseball insider Jeff Passan lauded Wojnarowski’s work in a post on Twitter/X.
“I’ve been fortunate to spend more than 20 years in this business working with reams of talented people,” Passan wrote. “Adrian Wojnarowski is the best. Period.
A peerless reporter. A gifted wordsmith. A storyteller nonpareil.
He is Jim Brown and Barry Sanders, leaving at the apex of his game.” On First Take, Stephen A. Smith, Wojnarowski’s colleague on NBA Countdown, called him “the best in the business.
” “He has my profound respect and I just hope that this is a very, very happy move and I anticipate that it is because we certainly didn’t ask him to leave, I can assure you of that,” Smith said. “If anybody deserves to be in the position to make this kind of (decision) for the betterment of their quality of life, he would be that individual. “He loves St.
Bonaventure, make no mistake about it ...
I’m happy for him, but I’m sad for us as a network because it’s a devastating loss for us to not have him.” In a statement posted by ESPN PR to Twitter/X, ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro praised Wojnarowski upon his retirement. “I’ve known and admired Woj since we first worked together at Yahoo! in 2007,” Pitaro said.
“His work ethic is second to none. He’s extraordinarily talented and fearless. He has led the industry at ESPN, and his dedication to the craft and to fans is legendary.
While we will miss his daily output, we completely understand his decision to make a lifestyle change and slow down a bit. We know he will continue to thrive in this next chapter, and he has our collective gratitude and support.” The university will officially welcome Amy and Adrian back to campus with a press conference next Wednesday at the Quick Center for the Arts theater at 4 p.
m., with the campus community welcome to attend..
