BRISTOL, Connecticut (Ticker) – Apparently, it is the Milwaukee Bucks that have acquired the services of John Hammond.

The Bucks have lured the highly-regarded Hammond away from the Detroit Pistons to be their new general manager, ESPN reported on its web site on Friday.

A longtime assistant under president Joe Dumars, Hammond had been pursued by a number of teams in recent years the report stated, including Portland and Toronto.

According to ESPN, Hammond could be named Milwaukee’s new GM as early as Monday. The Bucks have been without one since Larry Harris was fired on March 19.

Harris, whose contract was set to expire on June 30, was let go due in part to the Bucks’ disappointing campaign in which they are 26-52 with four games remaining. With the presence of All-Star Michael Redd and young stars Andrew Bogut and Yi Jianlian, Milwaukee had been expected to return to the playoffs after a one-year absence.

 

Serving in the Pistons’ front office since the 2001-02, Hammond has worked alongside Dumars to build a team that has won at least 50 games for seven straight seasons and made five consecutive trips to the Eastern Conference finals, winning a championship in 2004.

One of Hammond’s first acts could be to find a new coach, preferably one with some experience. According to the report, rumors are that first-year coach Larry Krystkowiak was expected to be dismissed at the end of the season regardless of who Harris’ successor would have been due to owner Herb Kohl’s desire for a veteran coach.