The Portland Trail Blazers hired Tom Penn to the position of assistant general manager, it was announced Tuesday by Trail Blazers general manager Kevin Pritchard.

In addition, domestic scouts Michael Born and Chad Buchanan have been promoted within the organization. Born becomes the Trail Blazers’ Director of NBA Scouting, and Buchanan the team’s Director of College Scouting.

“These structural moves within the basketball operations department will help us become one of the best in the business,” said Pritchard. “Tom Penn is an expert on a litany of player personnel issues, and I’m excited to begin working with him immediately on next month’s draft and free agency. Michael and Chad have been tremendous talent evaluators for us, and are very deserving of their respective promotions.”

Penn comes to the Trail Blazers from the Memphis Grizzlies, where he served as assistant general manger/legal counsel since May of 2000. Prior to joining the Grizzlies in 1999, Penn spent time as an attorney and a player agent after graduating from the University of Illinois law school in 1993.

With the Trail Blazers, Penn will assist Pritchard on day-to-day player personnel decisions, while lending his expertise to matters of the salary cap and Collective Bargaining Agreement.

Born and Buchanan joined the Trail Blazers as domestic scouts prior to the 2004-05 season, and have since assisted Pritchard in evaluating players at both the collegiate and professional levels.