Milton Newton is an American professional basketball executive and former player. He is the assistant general manager of the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association. Newton played basketball as a small forward and attended University of Kansas. He helped lead his team to the Final Four national championship in 1989. After college, Newtown played professionally in Belgium and Australia.
Since he has worked at a scout for the Philadelphia 76ers and Assistant Director of the USA Basketball Team. In September 2013, he was hired by the Minnesota Timberwolves as their general manager, but was let go by the team in May 2016.
Milt Newton joins 'Forbes Talks' with Jabari Young to talk about the current Bucks Season and his experience being as a Black NBA coach and General Manager.
0:00 Introduction
0:53 Milt Newton On The Bucks Season
1:33 Team Chemistry And Setting The Tone
3:05 Giannis' Longevity And Success With The Bucks
5:53 How Does An NBA Coach Build A Roster?
9:24 Newton On His Career And How Its Changed
Since he has worked at a scout for the Philadelphia 76ers and Assistant Director of the USA Basketball Team. In September 2013, he was hired by the Minnesota Timberwolves as their general manager, but was let go by the team in May 2016.
Milt Newton joins 'Forbes Talks' with Jabari Young to talk about the current Bucks Season and his experience being as a Black NBA coach and General Manager.
0:00 Introduction
0:53 Milt Newton On The Bucks Season
1:33 Team Chemistry And Setting The Tone
3:05 Giannis' Longevity And Success With The Bucks
5:53 How Does An NBA Coach Build A Roster?
9:24 Newton On His Career And How Its Changed
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SportsTranscript
00:00 (upbeat music)
00:02 - We're here now at the 2023 Forrest BLK Summit,
00:06 right after our panel.
00:07 I'm joined by Milwaukee Bucks Assistant GM,
00:09 Mill Newton.
00:10 And Mill, thank you so much for the time, man,
00:12 and coming to the summit here in Atlanta.
00:14 What do you think, man?
00:15 What do you think?
00:15 - First of all, thank you for having me.
00:17 And I think this is an awesome collection
00:21 of collaborative minds that wants to improve,
00:24 this venue, this sport,
00:28 and how we perceive ourselves
00:29 and how we can add to it.
00:31 - Yeah, and what we need brothers like you
00:32 to continue to be the way, right?
00:34 'Cause we see it, right?
00:36 Examples are the gold card of judgment.
00:37 So we need good examples like yourself
00:39 so we can continue to make good judgments
00:41 and see people like yourself so we can aim for that.
00:44 But again, in Milwaukee, man,
00:45 how has the season been going so far
00:47 and in this position you're in?
00:49 And you didn't even wear your ring.
00:50 So thank you for not trying to bling out on me.
00:51 I was thinking you were gonna wear the ring on me.
00:53 - Yeah, no, I think our season is going
00:56 how we thought it was gonna go.
00:58 The one thing that we knew is we have our core back
01:03 that's been together with us for the last three,
01:06 four, five years.
01:08 But one of the key ingredients is new.
01:12 And so trying to get Damien to fit in
01:17 with who we have, Giannis and Brooke and Chris
01:21 and the rest of the guys, that's gonna take some time.
01:24 You don't just throw talent on and expect talent to win.
01:27 Not in this league.
01:28 You've gotta have some chemistry
01:30 and that's something that we're working through right now.
01:33 - Yeah, I remember, as I always do,
01:35 I always call around all the leagues
01:36 and people I know to say, "Hey, good luck this season.
01:39 "Healthy."
01:40 And we were talking and you said,
01:41 "Hey, listen, that intro, that first game,
01:44 "it sets the tone for the new team, right?
01:47 "New head coach, another star coming in."
01:49 And you guys did that, right?
01:50 The tone has been set.
01:51 That tone, what is it?
01:54 - Well, the tone is Griff, first of all,
01:59 like you said, new coaching staff.
02:02 Griff says, "Fine, we do have a team on paper
02:06 "that's capable of winning a championship,
02:08 "but we're gonna have to do the work day by day."
02:13 And the tone is, we have to do the work day in and day out
02:17 because the 29 other teams don't care about us.
02:22 We're not just gonna show up and win a game.
02:24 We're gonna have to compete.
02:26 And the things that our coaching staff
02:27 are trying to ingrain with our team,
02:31 the hard work, the sacrifice, going above and beyond,
02:34 those are the things that will carry us once our team,
02:37 once the chemistry gets put together, and once we gel,
02:41 those are the things that are gonna carry us
02:43 on those long nights in the NBA, those dog days,
02:46 as we like to say in the NBA.
02:48 It's like, okay, are you playing your role?
02:52 Are you doing everything that you can
02:54 to help us win?
02:55 What sacrifices are you making?
02:57 I think those are very important.
02:59 - What's it like to have Giannis Antetokounmpo
03:01 as your superstar of the franchise
03:03 that you help in their front office?
03:05 - Giannis is the best.
03:07 On the panel-- - Everybody says that
03:09 to a middle age. - No, but let me tell you why.
03:11 On the panel, we talked about everyone wants to win,
03:16 but there's always a but.
03:17 I wanna win, but there's no buts with Giannis.
03:21 Giannis puts the work in every day,
03:24 and if your best player, arguably the best player
03:27 in the world, is gonna put the work in every day,
03:29 then players 14, or in the case now,
03:34 17 through one, if he is working hard,
03:41 you better be working hard.
03:44 And he's showing, he sets the example.
03:46 He sets the example, and that's the only thing
03:49 he worries about.
03:50 That's the only thing Giannis worries about is winning.
03:53 And he is willing to put the work in,
03:55 and he wants his teammates to put the work in.
03:57 So it's a joy watching him develop,
04:01 and the reason why he has developed the way he has,
04:03 he does not skip steps.
04:05 He does not skip steps.
04:07 He works at his craft every single day.
04:09 And he is, like I said, arguably the best player
04:11 in the world, but he still feels like
04:13 he has room to improve.
04:15 - You have one of the most elite eyes
04:18 when it comes to talent in the NBA,
04:19 and I've always talked to you over the years
04:20 when it came down to scouts, or excuse me,
04:23 the NBA draft time, like what should I be looking at,
04:26 like what character, what traits,
04:28 what things do I should be looking at?
04:30 You've always taught me things like that.
04:32 Looking at Damian Lillard now on your team,
04:34 I'm sure, Milt, you've scouted him
04:35 since he was back at Weber,
04:37 and you see how he's developing.
04:38 Now he's under your roof, right?
04:40 Under, with the team this year, with the Milwaukee Bucks.
04:42 Anything that you noticed about him
04:44 that maybe you didn't see before,
04:45 or maybe you say, hey, man, I knew that he could do that,
04:49 but to see it in front of your face is a different thing.
04:51 Anything that's turning you,
04:52 or is different about Damian Lillard,
04:53 now that you have him?
04:54 - Well, his confidence is just as high as Giannis's,
04:59 or Chris's.
05:01 His confidence level is high.
05:03 Damian believes in who he is and what he does,
05:08 and to have a player like that,
05:10 when the game is on the line,
05:11 there is no second guessing
05:13 whether or not I should take the shot,
05:15 or no, he knows I'm capable of these big moments,
05:18 and he embraces those moments.
05:19 But the thing about him that I've realized
05:23 that I didn't really know about until now,
05:25 because I didn't know him,
05:27 he is a humble person that will talk to everyone,
05:32 and he's so easy to talk to.
05:35 He doesn't have an air about him.
05:37 He is a humanitarian in the sense of the word.
05:40 The things he does in his communities,
05:42 the help that he wants to give people,
05:44 it's very apparent now, being and seeing him day to day,
05:47 and hearing him and hearing how he talks,
05:50 and what he talks about.
05:51 He is all about people.
05:53 - Yeah.
05:54 How do you balance building a roster,
05:56 doing your job, right,
05:57 but at the same time trying to keep your ambitions
05:59 under control, right?
06:00 Because every time we talk about people of color
06:03 and positions in sports or front office roles,
06:06 I bring your name up amongst even owners,
06:10 because I'm like, man, a guy like Milt Newton,
06:11 you take him, he's been in different organizations,
06:14 and his perspective has only gotten bigger, right?
06:16 Imagine what he can do when you put together a roster.
06:19 How do you deal with that maybe not being
06:21 where you want to be, right?
06:22 Everybody wants to run their own team.
06:23 Here you are in Milwaukee,
06:25 you continue to pay your dues helping this franchise,
06:27 but how do you keep your ambitions under control
06:29 and go for the greater good at helping the team?
06:31 - Yes.
06:32 See, I follow my own advice.
06:35 I want to win, and I want to win a championship,
06:39 so there are no buts.
06:40 Just like we ask players to play a role,
06:44 if you're gonna be the third guy,
06:46 get the shots when you can, play your role,
06:48 you're gonna be a rebounder, you're gonna set screens.
06:52 I too play my role.
06:53 I told my boss, John Horse, when he first hired me,
06:58 I said, he says, "Milt, I know you've done this job before,
07:01 "and I want us to work together."
07:04 And I know sometimes there are some people
07:06 that can be insecure, John is not one of 'em,
07:09 but just to put his mind at ease, I said,
07:11 "Hey, look, I will never ever carry myself
07:13 "like I am running this team."
07:16 I'm going to be your assistant,
07:18 I'm going to give you advice, I'm gonna mentor you.
07:22 I play my role, and I'm happy in that.
07:25 My opinions and my suggestions are very valuable
07:29 to the organization, very valuable to John,
07:31 and I'm good with that.
07:32 Yes, I would like to run my own team again.
07:35 If it happens, great.
07:36 If it doesn't happen, that's great too.
07:38 I am content with my career, where I am,
07:42 but I love the fact that I am in an organization right now
07:45 that's collaborative, and my suggestions and my opinions
07:50 hold a very high value, and that's all I can ask for.
07:54 - Again, talking to Milt Newton,
07:55 assistant GM of the Milwaukee Bucks,
07:56 and as much stuff as you do on the court
07:58 and care about your career,
08:00 there's a lot of stuff you do off the court as well.
08:01 Your foundation, I know you're very passionate about that,
08:04 tell me a little bit about it.
08:05 - Yes, so I'm a co-founder with Emerald Gems Foundation,
08:09 and growing up in the Virgin Islands to the age of 13,
08:12 I remember when I was growing up as a kid,
08:15 never really feeling like anyone was paying attention to me,
08:20 never really having anyone come back
08:21 to show me how to do something.
08:25 And so, feeling like that and being in the position I'm in,
08:30 I said, "That's the legacy that I would like to leave."
08:33 So, started a foundation,
08:36 we go back and we do basketball camps for our kids,
08:39 100 every summer.
08:42 When I was with the Timberwolves,
08:43 we brought kids up to the States
08:45 and showed them that you can still work with an NBA franchise
08:50 other than wearing a jersey.
08:52 There's marketing, there's sales, there's graphics,
08:55 there's all these other vocations that you can do,
08:57 and enlightening the kids to those things,
09:00 and pretty much just going back
09:02 and giving back to the youth of the Virgin Islands.
09:05 It's very important to me,
09:06 and I always tell them,
09:08 when you get bigger and you get successful
09:11 and you move on, always come back.
09:13 So, I'm trying to pay it forward
09:15 and still stress to our young kids,
09:17 you can do the same thing.
09:19 And if you do that,
09:20 you can help someone else achieve their goals.
09:23 So, that's very, very important to me.
09:25 - I appreciate all the work that you're doing, man.
09:26 Get you out of here on this.
09:27 We do the good, the great, right?
09:29 It ain't gonna be the same good, the great, right?
09:31 It's not gonna be that one that we had on stage,
09:32 but a different one, right?
09:34 And we're gonna pay homage to your career, right?
09:36 What's the difference between a good basketball team?
09:41 - The definition, I should say, have changed, right?
09:43 Because it went from GM,
09:44 and now it's like President of Basketball Operations
09:47 is the new GM today.
09:48 So, I'll do that.
09:49 The difference between a good basketball,
09:52 President of Basketball Operations, and a great.
09:54 - Communication.
09:56 Once again, sacrifice.
10:00 There are too many people that are afraid to speak up.
10:04 Being able to give the hard conversations.
10:09 I'm gonna name drop for one second,
10:12 Karan Butler, one of my good friends.
10:15 When I was with the Washington Wizards, he told me,
10:17 "Milk, always tell the truth, even if it's the hard truth,
10:21 "because at the end of the day,
10:23 "that person can walk away saying,
10:25 "you know, that was really tough to hear,
10:27 "but at least he told me the truth."
10:30 Telling the truth, I think that's very important.
10:33 And so, being good to great, I think communication,
10:37 collaboration, being honest.
10:41 And sometimes I'm pretty blunt with my honesty,
10:45 but I want you to know that,
10:46 I want you to know that what I'm telling you is constructive,
10:51 but I don't want you to leave my conversation,
10:54 the conversation we had,
10:56 and wondering what was he trying to say.
10:59 I don't want it to be ambiguous.
11:01 So, I tell you the truth, straightforward.
11:04 And I think people appreciate that.
11:06 But for the most part, listening to others
11:10 and what they have to offer.
11:12 I think if your subordinates know that they're being heard,
11:17 that's all they want,
11:19 and they will give you everything that they have.
11:22 And so, I think those are the things
11:23 that I think can lead you from good to great.
11:27 - Mildred Newton, Assistant GM of the Milwaukee Bucks.
11:29 Thank you so much for the time, man.
11:30 Thank you for coming to the Be OK Summit.
11:32 And you gotta come back, man, right?
11:33 - Most definitely. - You gotta come back.
11:34 - Most definitely. - I appreciate you.
11:35 - And hopefully we gotta bring it
11:36 to the Virgin Islands one day, man.
11:37 We gotta do something down there.
11:38 - Oh, that would be awesome.
11:39 - It would be, it would be, man.
11:40 - That would be awesome.
11:41 - Appreciate the time, man, as always.
11:42 Thanks a lot, Mildred. - Thank you.
11:43 Thank you for having me. - Appreciate it.
11:44 Absolutely. - All right, Javari.
11:45 (upbeat music)
11:48 (upbeat music)
11:50 [BLANK_AUDIO]