National Basketball Association

Warkentien is Knicks' player personnel director

Published Feb. 5, 2011 12:48 p.m. ET

foxsports

The New York Knicks have hired veteran league executive Mark Warkentien as director of pro player personnel.

Team president Donnie Walsh announced the move Saturday in a statement, saying Warkentien will work with him on preparing for the NBA draft, scouting assignments and personnel moves.

Warkentien was most recently vice president of basketball operations for Denver, winning NBA executive of the year honors following the 2008-09 season. The Nuggets let his contract expire when they restructured their front office in the summer of 2010.

Warkentien also held front office positions for the Portland Trail Blazers, Cleveland Cavaliers and Seattle SuperSonics. Before that he spent 11 years in the basketball operations department at UNLV.