Shaun Livingston decides to leave Warriors front office after three years

The Golden State Warriors will have to replace another prominent member of their front office this offseason. According to a report by Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area, former Warriors guard Shaun Livingston has decided to step down as the franchise’s director of players affairs and engagement after three seasons in the role. Per Johnson, it was Livingston’s decision to leave the organization, and he was motivated by a desire to spend more time with his family (who are not located in the Bay Area).

Livingston joins a growing list of prominent Warriors employees leaving the organization following the season. General manager Bob Myers’ departure was obviously the most notable, but director of player development Jama Mahlalela also took a job as the top assistant with the Toronto Raptors.

Livingston, of course, is most known for his on-court career, which featured a late-career resurgence with the Dubs. Livingston played in parts of 14 NBA seasons from 2004-2019 despite a seven-year ordeal recovering from a catastrophic knee injury. Livingston spent the last five seasons of his career with the Warriors, his longest tenure with any one organization. He won three rings with the Dubs and averaged 5.4 points, 2.4 assists, and 2.0 rebounds per game as head coach Steve Kerr’s backup point guard.

Following his playing career, Livingston was interested in working in an NBA front office but was hesitant to join the predominantly white space. It was Myers who was able to convince Livingston to join the Warriors’ brass.

Given Livingston’s original trepidation to join the front office, given how white it was, it’s worth wondering if he was disappointed with a lack of upward mobility in the organization. Livingston was not promoted during his three years with the team.

While new general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. will soon be filling out his front office with some important hires (and has stressed that diversity is a priority), for now, the top of the Warriors brass is quite white with a heavy dose of NBA nepotism. Dunleavy, assistant general manager Larry Harris, executive vice president of basketball operations Kirk Lacob, executive director of team development Kent Lacob, and director of basketball operations Jonnie West are all the children of former NBA head coaches or, in Kirk and Kent’s case, a Warriors’ owner.