San Antonio Spurs GM inspires students in biz school talk, receives inaugural Hall of Fame award

“The Zapara School of Business is amazingly proud of the things that a number of members of our family have accomplished,” said school associate dean Gary Chartier in introducing the recognition. “So much so that the Zapara team has decided this year to create the Zapara School of Business Hall of Fame [to honor] an array of people whose excellence in any field will bring respect to the School of Business.”

Wright, who was in the area for the Spurs’ games against the Los Angeles Lakers and Clippers on Jan. 25 and 26, gave a 26-minute inspirational presentation to a conference center audience that included university athletics coaches and student-athletes, visiting middle school students, campus members and community leaders. He discussed his beginnings in 2000 at La Sierra University as a pre-health pharmacy major-turned business major while playing for and leading the Golden Eagles basketball team. He focused on the core principles he has formed along a pathway that presented unexpected opportunities for learning, growth, and the formulation of a vocation he previously had not considered.

“Hopefully some of those things will resonate with them [students] as they transition through the remainder of school or into their job search or how they approach life,” he said in an interview prior to his talk.

Wright recalled as a new student at La Sierra he slept through 8 a.m. pharmacy chemistry classes which came after 6 a.m. basketball practices. He soon realized pharmacy wasn’t in the cards and switched to information systems management which also proved a poor fit. Family members and alumni who had studied in La Sierra’s business school advised him to consider its programs and following conversations with Thomas, Wright changed majors.

“It kind of opened my eyes up to something different. Basketball was a guiding force for me throughout life, and it helped me put the two of them [basketball and business] together, which kind of ultimately led me to what I'm doing now,” he said. “I never had this grand plan, but with the education I got here, it kind of helped me kind of figure out what was next.”

Wright is in his third season as general manager with the Spurs, and previously served three seasons as the team’s assistant GM. Prior to leading the Spurs, he was assistant general manager for the Detroit Pistons for two years preceded by seven years with the Orlando Magic where he rose through the ranks to become college scouting director.

"You never really know in life who those mentors will be who will be able to help you. You just have to approach things with your best effort.” -- Brian Wright, San Antonio Spurs General Manager, La Sierra University Class of 2004

During his presentation at La Sierra, Wright talked about the impact of his educational experiences on the development of networking skills and the ability to advocate for himself and to ask questions. He emphasized the importance of ground-floor work toward gaining experience and access to opportunities, and the value of advisors and guides. He cited the early influence of Thomas and of Richard Lapchick, director of the Institute for Diversity & Ethics in Sport at the University of Central Florida from which he earned a master’s degree in sports business management.

“They didn't know it at the time, but they were mentors for me,” Wright said. “They got me to think differently, to think about things that I never thought were possible. And then it opened up the doors. You never really know in life who those mentors will be who will be able to help you. You just have to approach things with your best effort.”

He recounted his initial efforts to secure inroads with the NBA’s Orlando Magic as a graduate student, and the unexpected pathway to a summer internship with the team through an instructor who was impressed with his dedication working and volunteering with university athletics. The internship led to future positions as a result of his willingness to learn and grow in spite of long hours and low pay, and through the mentorship of leaders he experienced along the way.

Wright described the importance of mentors, of networking, of pursuing one’s passion and determining success on one’s own terms as among the values he has come to recognize over the past 20 years as core to his personal and professional success.“I had to define success for myself at age 20,” Wright said. “When I was playing, success looked a lot different than it did when I was 25. And when I was 30, and 35, and now 40. And it's a constant evolution that you're asking yourself, but you're bound by nobody else's definition of success than your own.

”I saw it [NBA] as something so far away, but seeing somebody that came from the same school where I’m at kind of made it seem not so far away."  -- Brandhon Thomas, graduate marketing student, Golden Eagles shooting guard

Sydney Jackson, a New Jersey native, business management graduate student and point guard on the Golden Eagles men’s basketball team described Wright’s talk as “intriguing.” Jackson experienced a torn anterior cruciate ligament, or ACL and has had to sit out the season. Wright’s retrospective into his own frustrations following the end of his collegiate basketball experience resonated with Jackson. “Hearing the fact that he played basketball and he didn’t know what to do afterwards, and he went on his way and communicated with a bunch of people to put him in a good situation is very outstanding,” Jackson said.

Riverside resident and computer science freshman Caleb Tinker pulls double duty as a center on the Golden Eagles basketball team and as a relief pitcher for the university’s baseball team. He is interested in a career in computer science within the ranks of Major League Baseball and is pursuing summer internships. “The thing that inspired me the most was how he really talked about building a championship program within just yourself and how you conduct your own work, and working 100 percent on everything you do no matter who’s watching,” said Tinker following Wright’s lecture. “That really stuck with me and that’s something I’ll probably carry on for the rest of my life.”

“It was a very eye-opening talk,” said graduate marketing student Brandhon Thomas, a Compton native and shooting guard with the basketball team. “I never really considered the NBA as a possibility [for a marketing career]. I saw it as something so far away, but seeing somebody that came from the same school where I’m at kind of made it seem not so far away. It gave me a little bit of confidence and willingness to want to try.”

Colloquium attendee Kayla Watanabe, a third-year double major in marketing and management and a former athlete noted the motivational factors of Wright’s talk and insights gained into the skill set needed for moving into a career with a professional sports league. “I really do love sports, and marketing is one of my top things I actually do love right now, and he brought into my mindset that you can start with one of your ideas of what you love, like social media marketing, and that can get you through the door,” she said. “It can help you broaden to so many other types of things. So he’s like, don’t shy away from taking opportunities to expand your knowledge about all of that because that’s well worth it in the future.” Watanabe has applied for summer internships with the Los Angeles Dodgers in communications and in broadcasting.

Wright became general manager of the Spurs a few months before nationwide closures ensued under to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Spurs are currently ranked 14th in the NBA’s western conference. The season ends April 10. “We’re in a nice transition where we’re building with a new young group and trying to establish that group. So we're excited about their future and what they're doing now and what the future holds for the franchise,” Wright said, prior to his presentation.

Wright attended Takoma Academy in Maryland before enrolling at La Sierra University where he graduated with a business degree in 2004. He was inducted into the Riverside Sports Hall of Fame in 2003 and 2004 for his exceptional performances as a guard with the Golden Eagles basketball team. He appeared for the Business Colloquium Series through Thomas’ invitation. The series spotlights leaders in a variety of fields and during fall quarter featured a project leader with the World Economic Forum and the past president of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.

Future colloquium talks are slated with Tim Davis, music producer, vocal contractor and performer, and Kailin Scott, a business school alumnus and chief executive officer of nonprofit Neighborhood Housing Services of the Inland Empire, or NHSIE.

“It was such an honor to have our alumnus Brian Wright take time out from his busy schedule and inspire our students with his journey,” said Thomas, business school dean. “It is vital that students have an opportunity to directly hear and learn from, and interact with those who have worked hard, pursued their dreams and succeeded, especially when such accomplished individuals graduated from La Sierra. This allows for an even stronger connection between our speakers and students.”