Just in time for “portal season,” Seton Hall men’s basketball’s first offseason addition was to its front office.
After rumors of his hiring last week, SHU’s athletics department announced in a press release on Monday that Nelson Hernandez will be the first general manager in program history.
Director of Athletics Bryan Felt said he was “thrilled to welcome Nelson Hernandez to Seton Hall.”
“Nelson brings a forward-thinking approach, with deep relationships across the basketball landscape,” Felt added. “As the role of general manager continues to evolve in college athletics, we're confident Nelson will be instrumental in supporting our student athletes and helping position our men's basketball program for continued success.”
Hernandez joins The Hall from Virginia Tech, where he also served as the general manager for the Hokies’ men’s basketball team last season, helping them to a 19-13 overall record and a 8-10 mark in ACC play.
Prior to Virginia Tech, Hernandez has over a decades-worth of experience in a number of front office and coaching staff roles, including most recently as: the director of player personnel and recruiting at West Virginia (2024-2025); the director of player development at Oklahoma State (2023-2024); and an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Fresno State (2022-2023).
Although the press release did not indicate how exactly his role will be defined as SHU see fit, it’s fair to assume that as the program’s general manager, Hernandez will oversee things like player valuation, roster construction / turnover, NIL opportunities and the program’s finances—thereby relieving head coach Shaheen Holloway and his coaching staff of that very duty so they can put all their focus into coaching.
“Nelson is going to bring a lot to the table for us,” Holloway said in the press release. “I'm excited to welcome him into our family as we continue to put our program in the best position possible for success.”
It wasn’t until the adoption of NIL around the 2021-2022 season that college basketball programs started hiring general managers—making it remarkable to consider what The Hall has achieved in the time since all without this now-crucial front office role.
With the transfer portal set to open on Tuesday following the conclusion of the National Championship on Monday, Hernandez’ hiring is a timely and immediate one, with his hands likely to be full from now until the portal closes on April 21—and likely after that as well.
Zachary Mawby is the head editor of The Setonian’s Sports section. He can be reached at zachary.mawby@student.shu.edu.
