Phoenix Suns' Vacant GM Position: Candidates

General Manager Steve Kerr and Assistant GM David Griffin are no longer with the Phoenix Suns. With the hiring of Lon Babby as President of Basketball Operations, it will be his job to hire a new GM.

Numerous names have come out as possible candidates for the job. Some are still floating around, and others have dropped their names from the race. Here is a list of the possible front-runners for the job.

Dennis Lindsey

After being an early front-runner for the GM position, Lindsey has withdrawn his name for consideration. He was an ideal candidate.

He is the current Vice President and Assistant GM for the San Antonio Spurs. Before that he spent 11 seasons with the Houston Rockets.

Charles Barkley

He played for the Suns from 1992-93 to 1995-96. A fan favorite, he would be instantly accepted into the position, but he isn't the ideal candidate for the job.

In 2000 he retired as one of only four players in NBA history with 20,000 points, 10,000 rebounds, and 4,000 assists.

Since 2000 he has been an analyst for TNT.

He has stated that he would be a better GM than Michael Jordan was. He also has said he would listen to any offer from Robert Sarver for the GM position, but he likely won't get a call unless no other candidates take the job and there is some sort of desperation.

Ronnie Lester

Lester was the 10th pick of the 1980 NBA Draft by the Portland Trail Blazers. He was immediately traded to the Chicago Bulls, where he played four seasons. In 1985 and 1986 Lester was a member of the Los Angeles Lakers, winning an NBA Championship in the first of those two seasons. Of his seven seasons as a player in the NBA, all but two were shortened by a recurring knee injury.

Lester began working for the Lakers' organization as a scout in 1987-88.

Since the 2006 season he has been the Assistant General Manager to Mitch Kupchak of the Los Angeles Lakers.

Lute Olson, his college coach at the University of Iowa, regards Lester as the best player he ever coached.

Magic Johnson also claimed Lester was the toughest opponent he ever faced in the Big Ten.

Tom Penn

He was recently fired from his Assistant GM and VP of Basketball Operations position by the Portland Trailblazers in a front office purge. He had been with the team since 2007.

He served as Assistant GM/Legal Counsel for the Memphis Grizzlies under Jerry West for six seasons.

He was a candidate for the general manager's job with the Minnesota Timberwolves last May. He removed himself from consideration when the Blazers promoted him.

He spent time as a criminal defense attorney and player agent after graduating from University of Illinois Law School in 1993.

He has expertise in matters of the salary cap and the collective bargaining agreement.

Since leaving the Trailblazers, Penn has been working in television.

Dell Demps

Dell Demps is the best candidate for the vacant general manager job. He is the current San Antonio Spurs Director of Pro Player Personnel and the D-League's Austin Toros General Manager. He is in his fifth season in the Spurs front office and also played for the Spurs during the 1995–96 season.

Dell played three seasons in the NBA for the San Antonio Spurs, Golden State Warriors, and the Orlando Magic. In addition, he played professionally in the Philippines, France, Greece, Turkey, and Croatia during his 10-year career.

Dell credits much of his knowledge base in business, finance, and law to the Eberhardt School and its outstanding curriculum and internships.

He earned a Master of Buinsness Administration from the University of Pacific.

Dell is one of the few "paperless" people in the NBA. In the NBA most personnel take notes on paper at basketball games when they scout NBA prospects, then type the notes and submit them to their respective team the next day.

Dell takes all of his notes on his PDA and finishes his report by the time he leaves the arena. He is clear about the time efficiency and effectiveness of this system and how it enables him to be more productive and complete other tasks.

If Dell Demps is hired he will bring a new sense of professionalism and a great knowledge of the business of the game. As the GM of the Toro's he is gaining great preparation for when he becomes a GM in the NBA, whether or not that is with the Suns.