Knicks hire Obama's brother-in-law to fill front-office job
NEW YORK (AP) The New York Knicks have hired former President Barack Obama's brother-in-law to a front-office position.
Craig Robinson was named vice president of player development Tuesday in a series of restructuring moves that followed the promotion of Steve Mills to president and the hiring of Scott Perry as general manager.
Robinson spent last season as Milwaukee's vice president of player and organizational development after serving as head coach at Oregon State (2008-14) and Brown University (2006-08).
The Knicks also hired Gerald Madkins as assistant general manager, Harold Ellis as director of player personnel, Michael Arcieri as director of basketball strategy and Fred Cofield as scout.
Perry says ''We are adding a host of highly-regarded and respected basketball people to work with the Knicks to fortify the franchise for years to come.''
Madkins returns to the Knicks, where he spent four seasons (2003-07) as a scout. Since then, he has serves in roles with Seattle/Oklahoma City (2007-08), Houston (2008-10), New Orleans (2010-12) and the Los Angeles Clippers (2013-17).
Ellis joins the organization after five seasons with Orlando as director of pro scouting. Arcieri also spent the past five seasons with Orlando, most recently serving as director of basketball operations last season.
Cofield was originally selected by New York in the fourth round of the 1985 NBA draft.
