From Tulane Law to the NBA front office: Onsi Saleh’s rapid rise

Few executives in professional sports have seen their stock rise faster than Onsi Saleh.

Recently dubbed the NBA's "hottest executive" by league observers, the Tulane School of Law alumnus has gone from assistant general manager to general manager to president of basketball operations for the Atlanta Hawks in less than two years, marking the latest milestone in one of the most remarkable ascents in professional sports management.

His rise has made Saleh one of the most talked-about young leaders in the NBA, and his latest promotion is widely viewed as a sign of the confidence the Hawks have placed in his leadership and vision for the franchise.

With his promotion, Saleh becomes one of three Tulane Law graduates to reach the highest ranks of a professional sports team's front office. He joins Mike Tannenbaum, who led football operations for the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins, and Dean Lombardi, who built two Stanley Cup-winning teams as president and general manager of the Los Angeles Kings. Saleh's success reflects both his own career trajectory and Tulane Law's longstanding impact on the sports industry.

While Saleh's success is remarkable, he is far from the only Tulane Law graduate making waves in the NBA, with alumni dotting front offices across the league. These include Jon Phelps, senior director of basketball strategy and team counsel for the Golden State Warriors; Andrew Baker, senior director of salary cap and strategy for the Dallas Mavericks; Marshall Rader, director of salary cap strategy for the Los Angeles Lakers; and the Charlotte Hornets' Director of Salary Cap Strategy Chris Robinson and Basketball Operations Strategic Assistant Davis Rourk.

Saleh earned his J.D. from Tulane Law in 2017, but his connection to the sports industry began well before graduation. Through Tulane's extensive network of alumni and industry partners, he gained access to opportunities that helped launch his career in professional basketball. An internship with the San Antonio Spurs led to a full-time position, beginning a journey that would eventually take him to the Golden State Warriors and, later, the Atlanta Hawks.

"Tulane Law provided an invaluable foundation that propelled me into an NBA career," Saleh said. "From the skills acquired through world-class professors and the specialized sports law program, to the relationships across leagues and figures in the sporting world, Tulane Law was integral to developing me into an NBA executive."

Despite the demands of his role, Saleh has remained deeply connected to Tulane Law and its students. As a frequent mentor in the Tulane Sports Law program, Saleh has helped guide numerous students who aspire to be the next sports executive success story. He is also a former participant and longtime judge of the Tulane Professional Basketball Negotiation Competition, which has become one of the law school's signature experiential learning opportunities. A recent report estimated that half the NBA's 30 teams feature a front-office executive who participated in the competition.

In addition, Saleh is a member of the Tulane Sports Law Advisory Board, helping shape initiatives and programming. His efforts reflect a hallmark of Tulane's Sports Law program: graduates who remain engaged with the next generation of students. Saleh's willingness to share his experience and professional insights has helped students better understand the increasingly complex business side of professional sports.

His career trajectory also underscores the growing value of legal training in sports management. Modern professional sports executives must navigate collective bargaining agreements, player contracts, salary cap rules, labor issues, intellectual property concerns and increasingly sophisticated business operations.

Saleh's legal education, combined with his basketball expertise, has helped position him for leadership roles at the highest level of the industry. Now, after guiding the Hawks back to the playoffs in the 2025-26 season, Saleh enters a pivotal offseason with authority over the franchise's basketball strategy and future direction.

For Tulane Law students, Saleh serves as a powerful reminder of what is possible when legal training, professional opportunity and mentorship intersect. Less than a decade after graduating, Saleh has become one of the most influential executives in professional basketball, and he continues to help open doors for those following in his footsteps.