3. Griffin was the right man for the job
The New Orleans Pelicans were in dire need of a change within the front office. The team has been stuck for years now, and seemed to have no specific direction. Franchise owner Gayle Benson knew she needed to make a move that would rejuvenate the organization.
The big move Benson ended up making was hiring David Griffin as their new executive vice president of basketball operations.
Griffin most recently worked as the GM for the Cleveland Cavaliers from 2014-17,a span during which he helped bring the city its first championship in more than 50 years.
Griffin was brought in to fix an immediate problem: the Anthony Davis dilemma. The star player made it be known that he wanted out of New Orleans and the team needed to figure out what would be the best route to take when dealing with AD.
The deal that they ended up agreeing to sent Davis to the Los Angeles Lakers and in exchange the Pels received Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball, Josh Hart and a whole bunch of draft picks, including the fourth pick in this year’s NBA draft.
The Pelicans have agreed to a deal to trade Anthony Davis to the Lakers for Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, Josh Hart, and three first-round picks – including the No. 4 overall in 2019 Draft, league sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 15, 2019
Come draft night Griffin and the Pelicans made another trade, this time with the Atlanta Hawks, in which they sent the pick they received from L.A. to the Hawks in exchange for the eighth and 17th picks in the draft.
Those selections ended up being big man Jaxson Hayes and guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker, who both have already showed promising things and great potential in the Summer League.
David Griffin was already a well-respected man in the league, and one who knows what it takes to be successful in a front office. However, he was coming into this job with a lot of pressure, as he was hired to turn the fortunes of the franchise around.
In a span of just a few months, the 46-year-old was able to find a trade for AD in which the team received a load of promising young players and asset and immediately cashed in on one of those assets, in which he turned one draft pick into two more promising young players.
Griffin came in right from day one and got to work for the Pelicans, and has so far done a great job. With him in the fold it seems like the franchise finally has the direction that they have been looking for.