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Sixers Make Adjustments in G League Front Office
Delaware Blue Coats announcer Allan Wylie calls home games from the Chase Fieldhouse in Wilmington. Jerry Habraken/Delaware News Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

As the NBA offseason is in full swing, teams around the association have found themselves making moves to their rosters ahead of the upcoming season. The same can apply to the various positions in the front offices in the league, with the Philadelphia 76ers making a switch at the G League level on Tuesday afternoon.

As reported by HoopsHype's Michael Scotto, the Sixers are appointing Ariana Andonian to the General Manager position of their G League affiliate, the Delaware Blue Coats. The move comes after Jameer Nelson, who served as the Blue Coats' general manager from 2023, got promoted to assistant general manager with the Sixers in early May.

Who is Ariana Andonian?

While not being one of the more popular names from the Sixers' Front Office, Andonian has been with Philadelphia for close to a year now, having been named the NBA team's Vice President of Player Personnel last August, having previously served a similar position with the Memphis Grizzlies in the year prior.

Andonian got her start in the NBA scene back in September 2015, having served as the Houst on Rockets' scouting coordinator for three years, before becoming a consultant for Duke University's basketball program.

How Have the Blue Coats Performed As Of Late?

Ever since the Blue Coats raised the 2022-23 banner at the Chase Field House, things haven't gone too smoothly, as they've failed to make it back to the finals ever since.

In head coach Mike Longabardi's first season in Wilmington, the season got off to a hot start for the Blue Coats, before seeing the likes of Ricky Council IV split time between the G League and the NBA, which severely hampered their production on the offensive end of the court.

The latter part would remain true du ring the 2024-25 season, as the Coats found it difficult to retain their two-way players, with Justin Edwards seeing his initial contract be upgraded to a regular contract midway through the year.

Mix this with a batch of shaky second halves, Longabardi's side failed to make it to the postseason, wrapping up the year with a record of 14-20, the worst it's been since the 2013-14 season, when the then Delaware 87ers went 12-38.

Despite this lackluster run of performances, the G League is about developing talent to make the step up to the next level, which is something that the Blue Coats have managed to do in recent years. Charles Bassey, Jaden Springer, Isaiah Joe, and the aforementioned Council, among others, are all players who have come through the Chase Fieldhouse en route to their respective destinations.

This article first appeared on Philadelphia 76ers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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