Gersson Rosas (born June 11, 1978) is a basketball executive who is Senior Vice President of Basketball Operations and general manager for the New York Knicks. Rosas is the NBA's first Latino President and General Manager of Basketball Operations. Rosas was the president of basketball operations of the Minnesota Timberwolves of the National Basketball Association (NBA).[1] He was previously the Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations for the Houston Rockets, where he worked for 16 seasons, and served under Daryl Morey. Rosas was briefly GM of the Dallas Mavericks.[2] Over 22 seasons in the NBA, Rosas' organizations have reached the NBA playoffs in 15 seasons. He has also worked for Team USA Basketball as an international scout since 2015.
Born in Bogotá, Colombia, Rosas immigrated to the U.S. with his family when he was three years old.[3]
He attended the University of Houston from 1996 to 2000, graduating cum laude with degrees in marketing and international business.[4]
Management career
Houston Rockets
Rosas joined the Houston Rockets front office in 2003. He began working under general manager Carroll Dawson and stayed on after Dawson's retirement, to become a trusted confidant of his replacement Daryl Morey.[citation needed] During his career with the Rockets, Rosas served various roles, beginning as a Personnel Scout/Video Coordinator for three seasons, and ultimately worked his way up to Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations, where he worked closely with Morey. Secondarily, he served as Director of Player Personnel, Director of Scouting, and General Manager for Houston's D-League affiliate, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. The Vipers made the D-League finals in all four of Rosas' seasons as GM, winning the D-League Championship twice.[5]
During Rosas's tenure in Houston the Rockets made the playoffs 12 times, advancing to the Western Conference Finals in 2015 and 2018. In 2017–18, the Rockets were owners of the NBA's best record (65–17), top offense in the league and a dynamic style of defense. Rosas played significant roles in developing the team's philosophy and roster, including the successful pursuits of Most Valuable Player James Harden and All-Star Chris Paul via trade acquisitions along with the free agent recruitment of P.J. Tucker and Eric Gordon. In addition, he was a leading force in the past draft selections of Clint Capela and Montrezl Harrell; trade acquisitions of Kyle Lowry, Goran Dragic and Luis Scola, and past free agent acquisitions of Dwight Howard and Patrick Beverley.[citation needed] Rosas also played a key role in head coach and coaching staff hires in the NBA (Mike D’Antoni, Kevin McHale) and NBA G League (Chris Finch, Nick Nurse).[citation needed]
Rosas was initially hired to be the Dallas Mavericks general manager in 2013, becoming the first Latino GM in the NBA, but left the post after only 3 months.[6] The departure was caused by disagreements regarding his level of control over the teams' basketball operations, which was intended to be supplementary to president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson.[7] Rosas then returned to Houston.
After six more seasons in Houston, Rosas was hired by the Minnesota Timberwolves as their president of basketball operations on May 1, 2019, in place of Tom Thibodeau.[9]
Rosas overhauled the team in his first season; in the 2019 NBA draft, he traded up for the No. 6 pick to select guard Jarrett Culver, and drafted guard Jaylen Nowell from Washington in the second round. Rosas traded for forward Jake Layman and signed undrafted free agent center Naz Reid. In February 2020, the organization acquired guards D'Angelo Russell and Malik Beasley, as well as forwards Juancho Hernangómez and Jarred Vanderbilt. By the end of the midseason trade deadline, only two inherited players remained. The Timberwolves finished with a 19–45 record amid the 2020 NBA Bubble, but won the first pick in the draft lottery, which Rosas used to select Anthony Edwards in the 2020 NBA draft. During the 2020-21 NBA season, Rosas hired Chris Finch as the team's 16th head coach and started a new era of Timberwolves basketball.
New York Knicks
Rosas was hired by the New York Knicks as a senior basketball advisor in February 2022. He was promoted to Senior Vice President of Basketball Operations in 2023.[10]