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Things have not gone according to plan this year for the New Orleans Pelicans, who will finish well below the playoff line in the Western Conference standings. New Orleans has been dealt several devastating injury blows this year, including a ruptured Achilles for trade acquisition Dejounte Murray.
Recently, NBA insider Jake Fischer of Yahoo! Sports took to Marc Stein's Substack account to report on how major changes could be in store for the Pelicans' front office this summer.
“The weekend was dominated by buzz about the Pelicans and mounting uncertainty about the futures of lead executive David Griffin and head coach Willie Green after a 21-win season that was again derailed by numerous injuries,” reported Fischer.
He also noted that “there are some in New Orleans, league sources say, who are undeniably bracing for (Griffin's) exit … with Green's status also tenuous.”
Some in the Pelicans' organization also weren't thrilled with what David Griffin gave up in the Murray trade this summer, which “was only exacerbated by the rise of Dyson Daniels in Atlanta after the Pelicans included him in the Murray deal,” per Fischer.
Tough times in New Orleans
Coming into this year, many viewed the Pelicans as a potential dark horse contender in the Western Conference. The team had addressed its biggest need by acquiring a primary ball handler in Murray, and on paper, New Orleans seemed to have one of the most talented starting fives in the entire NBA.
Fast forward six months, however, and almost nothing has gone according to plan for the Pelicans. Murray, CJ McCollum, Herb Jones, Zion Williamson and others have all missed extended periods of time due to injuries, and even when they were on the court, things weren't exactly running smoothly.
The team also traded Brandon Ingram to the Toronto Raptors at the trade deadline after he had also been dealing with a prolonged injury absence.
Overall, if there was ever an organization looking to clean house over the summer, it would seem to be the Pelicans.
