Morgan Tuck’s childhood interest in becoming a general manager wasn’t sparked by the job responsibilities. Growing up in Bolingbrook, she didn’t even know what the role entailed.
But she was drawn to it because of one person.
“When I was young, I — for some reason — really liked Pat Riley when he was with the Heat and their GM,” Tuck said. “There was something about Pat Riley that I just thought was so cool. So I was like, ‘Oh. Being a GM could be cool one day.’ ”
Last week, that proved to be more than just a fleeting thought in Tuck’s adolescence when the Sun named her the second solo GM in franchise history and the youngest in WNBA history. Tuck, 30, a former forward with the Sun and Storm, is now one of two Black women GMs in the league, joining Ohemaa Nyanin, who was named GM of the expansion Valkyries in the spring. There are still two vacant GM positions with the Mystics and the Lynx.
“It’s always a good thing when there is more representation,” Tuck said. “I was a young Black girl at one point. When you get to see people in different roles or in a role you thought about but weren’t sure was possible, it makes it more relatable.
“It’s always kind of double-edged. It’s good that I’m the second, but I don’t think there will just be two in the future.”
Tuck, who has been with the Sun in a front-office position since 2021, replaces Darius Taylor, who took over in 2022 after coach/GM Curt Miller left following six straight playoff appearances and two runs to the WNBA Finals. Taylor will assume a new role as chief basketball strategist and director of scouting.
On Tuck’s plate is the responsibility of upholding the winning standard the Sun have been known for since 2016. It’s a tall task, considering all but three players will be free agents in the new year. Tuck will work in tandem with a new coach, Rachid Meziane, the coach of the Belgian women’s national team, to construct the
new roster.
“Any time you go into a period where it’s a lot of uncertainty and a lot of moving pieces, you just have to do your due diligence,” Tuck said. “You have to make sure you do the right things to put together the best roster. That could be a mix of [bringing players back and going after top free agents.] We’re still trying to get there and figure out what exactly it will look like.”
Tuck, who played for Bolingbrook High School and was a McDonald’s All-American in 2012 before spending four years at UConn, said she’ll rely heavily on her experience as a player in her new GM role. The Sun drafted her in 2016 with the third overall pick. She played four seasons for them before signing with the Storm in 2020, winning a WNBA title that year.
Tuck is younger than many of the veterans she might pursue in free agency in six weeks. Not long ago, she shared the court with some of them. She doesn’t see that as a negative but as something that will help her.
“You just have to set boundaries and have a balance,” she said. “That’s always the hard part when you have previous relationships with people that could be on your team or on different teams. It’s about the balance.
“Luckily, all the former teammates and players I’ve played with are very mature. They might not understand exactly what my job entails or what I’m doing, but they understand the situation. It helps that we have a league of grown women who understand work and personal time.”