Top NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski’s decision to retire from ESPN is big news in the basketball and media world, but what’s next for the former reporter is a story with significant implications for college basketball.

Wojnarowski is the latest (and certainly most recognizable) name to accept a general manager position in college basketball, taking over at his alma mater, the St. Bonaventure Bonnies men’s basketball program. His role will include “managing a broad range of responsibilities including NIL opportunities and serving as a liaison to collectives; transfer portal management; recruit, family and former player relations; professional player programs; and program fundraising,” according to the press release distributed by the school Wednesday morning. After years of covering the inner workings of NBA front offices, Wojnarowski’s new job essentially involves running the front office of a college basketball team.

College football programs have been building human resources departments separate from the coaching staff for years. Now, with roster management and NIL resource allocation (and revenue sharing on the horizon) becoming more important parts of building top basketball programs, many programs at every level of the sport are looking for general managers. Duke was one of the first programs to invest in the position, hiring former Nike sports marketing executive Rachel Baker to help players with personal branding and NIL partnerships. Since then, programs at every level have hired people for the role with backgrounds from all areas of the basketball and business worlds.

Syracuse (Alex Kline), Butler (Tony Bollier) and even Howard (Daniel Marks) have hired former NBA scouts/staff members for the position, while Texas Tech hired basketball organizer Kellen Buffington, who has close ties to the state of Texas. Wojnarowski is the first national media member from the basketball world to take such a job in college, but 247Sports’ top football analyst Barton Simmons is now GM of the Vanderbilt football team, and several media members have moved into NBA offices in recent years.

The role has different responsibilities depending on the program and the setting. Some are hired to drive talent evaluation, others to manage relationships with player agents, who increasingly represent players while they are still in college. In some programs, the role functions more as a fundraiser, helping to source NIL deals and collective donations. And given the rapid changes in the sport, which could be further accelerated by the impending House deal that will usher in revenue sharing, it may take a while for programs to actually agree on the most valuable options to fill these positions. But coaches Sports illustrated he’s spoken to in recent months overwhelmingly believe these “front office” jobs are inevitable in the sport’s new era. One coach’s agent even told SI earlier this year that he believes the GM could eventually become the most important and highest-paid employee in many college programs, aside from the head coach. Alabama football’s giving GM Courtney Morgan a multi-year contract worth $825,000 annually in August was seen as a sea change in the level of investment in football, and it wouldn’t be surprising if basketball followed suit.

The situation with Wojnarowski and St. Bonaventure is unique. Wojnarowski has long been a supporter of the school and has actively supported the program in the NIL space. In February, he and his wife Amy donated $50,000 to the school’s NIL collective, Team Unfurl, and another $50,000 through a fundraising campaign. He also tweeted several times during the offseason about the program’s spring recruiting efforts and spoke to new recruits to the program. Last offseason, a player recruited by St. Bonaventure in the transfer portal told a rival school he had a long phone conversation with Wojnarowski before making his decision (he ultimately chose St. Bonaventure). While this could be a retirement job and an opportunity to spend more time at his alma mater, it seems likely that Wojnarowski will do a lot to help the Bonnies win. In addition, his relationships throughout the basketball world, especially with agents, should be of benefit to SBU in recruiting players, as will his in-depth knowledge of how NBA front offices work.

Should any school count on being able to bring back perhaps its most prominent basketball alumnus in such a role? Clearly not. The fact that Wojnarowski’s “retirement job” involves entering the chaotic world of college basketball and NIL shows how demanding his former job was and how committed he is to the Bonnies.

Wojnarowski’s move to college basketball should bring a lot of attention to the new world of general managers. This “Woj Bomb” may not announce a major transfer or the signing of a top free agent, but the impact of someone as well-known as Wojnarowski taking a job like this should have ripple effects throughout the sport and programs across the country. Investment in general managers in college basketball was already on the rise, but Wojnarowski has a chance to become a major trendsetter in his new role.