Former NBA executive Lance Blanks dead at 56

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Former Phoenix Suns general manager Lance Blanks has died at the age of 56.

Blanks gained prominence in the basketball world as a member of the University of Texas basketball program from 1988 to 1990, helping the Longhorns reach the Elite Eight his final year there.

"Lance was a light for all those who knew him," NBA exec and former Detroit Piston Joe Dumars said in a statement. "It’s been a privilege to have called him one of my closest friends. 

"I’m eternally grateful for all the support he has shown me throughout the years. His legacy will be carried on, not only by his family, but by all those whose lives he touched for the better. You will be dearly missed, brother."

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General manager Lance Blanks of the Phoenix Suns hosts a press conference for unrestricted free agent Michael Beasley July 20, 2012, at U.S. Airways Center in Phoenix, Ariz.  (Barry Gossage/NBAE via Getty Images)

Blanks was the 26th selection of the 1990 NBA Draft by the Detroit Pistons, playing short stints with them and the Minnesota Timberwolves before playing overseas.

After his playing career, he became a scout for the San Antonio Spurs in 2000 and was promoted to the director of scouting two years later. He spent five seasons as assistant general manager of the Cleveland Cavaliers and then was the GM of the Suns from 2010 to 2013.

Lance Blanks (21) of the Minnesota Timberwolves shoots against the New York Knicks during a game in 1993 at Madison Square Garden in New York City.  (Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images)

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