Shareef Abdur-Rahim Named G League President; Malcolm Turner Steps Down

The NBA announced Tuesday that former NBA star Shareef Abdur-Rahim will replace Malcolm Turner as president of the G League.

Turner will step down on Jan. 11, 2019, in order to become the athletic director at Vanderbilt University.

Abdur-Rahim has served as the NBA's vice president of basketball operations since 2016, and he had the following to say regarding his new role: "I am thrilled to have this extraordinary opportunity with the NBA G League. I've seen firsthand the NBA G League's remarkable growth under Malcolm's leadership, and I look forward to working with the players, teams and my colleagues to take the league to even greater heights."

The 42-year-old Abdur-Rahim spent 12 seasons in the NBA as a player with the Vancouver Grizzlies, Atlanta Hawks, Portland Trail Blazers and Sacramento Kings.

He was named an All-Star while with the Hawks during the 2001-02 season, as he averaged 21.2 points and 9.0 rebounds per game.

In 830 career regular-season contests before retiring in 2008, Abdur-Rahim averaged 18.1 points and 7.5 rebounds per game.

Following his playing career, Abdur-Rahim spent time as an assistant general manager and assistant coach with the Kings, and he also served one season as GM of the G League's Reno Bighorns.

Turner had served as president of the G League since 2014 after a stint at Wasserman Media Group. His basketball experience was limited when he was hired, but Turner does have a legal background.

The G League had 18 teams when Turner took over, but it has since expanded to 27 teams with nearly every NBA franchise now having a G League affiliate.

The G League's change in leadership comes at a key time in the organization's history since it is set to offer an alternative professional path to players beginning in the 2019-20 season.

Rather than playing collegiately or overseas professionally out of high school, players will have the option to spend a year in the G League before entering the NBA draft.

Abdur-Rahim will be at the forefront of the initiative, which figures to put a brighter spotlight on the G League than ever before.