The San Antonio Spurs have managed to keep their NBA Finals core intact, but the same has not been the case with their coaches and front office. After losing top assistant Sean Sweeney, who accepted the head coach role at Orlando Magic, another important figure within the organization is reportedly on his way out. This time, the departure comes from the front office, with a five-year veteran set to join head coach Dan Hurley’s staff at UConn.
UConn is hiring Charlie Stevens as its new general manager, according to multiple reports. Stevens spent the past five seasons with the Spurs, most recently serving as the team’s director of grassroots scouting. His departure gives the Huskies a young executive with NBA front-office experience while leaving San Antonio without a valued member of its scouting operation.
Stevens joined the Spurs shortly after graduating from Clark University in 2021. A Bronx, New York, native, he was a two-year captain at the Division III school before beginning his professional career in San Antonio. The time playing in Division III shaped Stevens in a way that aided his eventual journey.
“When you play Division 3 ball, you develop the mentality that you’re not bigger than any one task,” said Stevens to ClarkU News. “Being part of the Clark men’s team taught me that. You needed to sacrifice your time and exert mental and physical energy over the course of the season. It was an excellent simulation of what life outside of college can look like.”
Stevens was certainly well prepared for life after college, as his reply to a question on future plans was along these lines.
“I want to ride it out as long as I can and see where it takes me.”
A key individual in Stevens’ journey was men’s basketball coach Tyler Simms. According to ClarkU News, the coach put Stevens in contact with just about everyone he knows who worked in the NBA. It gave Stevens a route he made the most of as he created scouting reports of potential NBA players that he sent across to multiple franchises.
Stevens did this to put his skills out there to showcase his passion and capability. A Division III college education meant that he had to work extra hard, but his reasoning behind this was really quite simple.
“No one asked me to do this,” Stevens said in the same 2022 interview, “but I figured if I include work samples with my resume, maybe it separates me from the thousands of kids also trying to break into this industry.”
That worked for Stevens, who got a chance at the Spurs.
He initially worked as a Basketball Operations Strategy and Scouting Assistant before moving into player engagement and grassroots scouting. His rise continued quickly.
In 2023, Stevens was promoted to Player Engagement and Grassroots Scouting Coordinator, and last summer he was elevated to director of grassroots scouting. The progression reflected the range of his experience in scouting, player evaluation, and relationship-building throughout the basketball world.
During his college years, he worked with Pro Hoops, Inc. and Excel Sports Management, where he gained experience in player development and operations. He also spent time overseas as a head video coordinator with Ironi Nes Ziona BC in Israel. All these experiences helped create the profile UConn wanted when it began searching for a replacement for Tom Moore.
UConn posted the general manager position in July, providing a glimpse into what the program wanted from its next hire. Sources previously told CT Insider that the Huskies were seeking a younger candidate with NBA experience and international connections. Stevens checks both boxes.
The Huskies may have had their eyes on Stevens as Moore’s successor even before the job was created. That’s because the Spurs have a history of scouting talent from UConn, including Stephon Castle from the 2024 draft, who went on to win NBA Rookie of the Year. Even earlier this year, San Antonio turned to another UConn product, Tarris Reed Jr., to fill out its first-round selection.
His scouting background could also prove valuable as college basketball becomes increasingly dependent on talent identification, recruiting, and the transfer portal. Stevens has spent his career evaluating players. His time working with the Spurs will have given him a perspective that can translate to roster construction at the college level.
Stevens’ role with the Huskies will look similar to the pitch he once made to NBA teams. Now, instead of evaluating players for San Antonio, he’ll be tasked with identifying and landing promising high school talent to keep UConn among the NCAA’s top programs.
He replaces Moore, who announced his retirement in July after a remarkable 21-season career at UConn across two separate tenures. Moore was part of four national championship teams, 1999, 2004, 2023, and 2024, and transitioned into UConn’s full-time general manager role ahead of the 2025–26 season.
For the Spurs, Stevens’ exit is a notable loss even if it does not directly affect the court. San Antonio has invested heavily in scouting and player development while building around Victor Wembanyama, and Stevens was part of that process for five seasons. Now, he will take what he learned in San Antonio to Storrs.