OT: Griffin out as Pelican's EVP of Basketball Opps

[bballsparkin]

According to ESPN, both Giannis and Jokic will go to the Lakers: LeBron, Reaves, Doncic, Giannis, Jokic.

Hard to beat that.

What do the Lakers have to offer? Giannis is signed till 2026/27 and then he has a player option. Jokic looks to be the same.

[ishoy123]

According to ESPN, both Giannis and Jokic will go to the Lakers: LeBron, Reaves, Doncic, Giannis, Jokic.

Hard to beat that.

What do the Lakers have to offer? Giannis is signed till 2026/27 and then he has a player option. Jokic looks to be the same.

Nothing, was a joke

[OhCanada]

Rogers can't wait to hire this guy

You should be thankful we havent hired any of these guys for 15 years.

[Los_29]

Shouldn’t have been hired and then to make matters worse, should’ve been fired a long time ago.

He did a terrible job. Wasted so many assets, catered to a player with no desire to play basketball and generally has no idea how to build a basketball team.

[ontnut]

Yeah, not the least bit surprising there. Zion's health isn't really his fault though, and that was the main contributor to their downfall year after year.

It is, though. His weight has been a concern since college, and everyone and their mother warned that his high-flying style of play coupled with his weight would lead to a career full of injuries.

And that's Griffin's fault somehow? Not Zion's? They TRIED to motivate him to get healthy, set weight limits, contract motivations etc.
Don't try and convince me that they were supposed to take Ja or someone else first overall in that draft. Zion was THE guy at #1.

[C_Money]

I though he put together a really good roster. They were just massively injury prone.

[bballsparkin]

Nothing, was a joke

My bad. I should have noticed it was a joke when you mentioned ESPN.

[Pointgod]

I though he put together a really good roster. They were just massively injury prone.

Then that’s not a good roster if you built with a bunch of injury prone players.

[Dr Positivity]

Dumars did deserve another GM shot, though it should've been 10 years ago.

[ArthurVandelay]

Anyone doubt BI wanted away from Zion?

"He stays ready. Every time that I've been here, he never complains about practice," the former New Orleans Pelican said. "I don't know how many minutes he played last night [vs. the San Antonio Spurs], but he took the game very seriously. That’s the type of guy you want to be around."

"I don't know his exact purpose for how hard he went last night, but players that don't have an ego and go out and play hard and have a winning mentality, those are guys you want to be around," he continued.

[WuTang_CMB]

Anyone doubt BI wanted away from Zion?

"He stays ready. Every time that I've been here, he never complains about practice," the former New Orleans Pelican said. "I don't know how many minutes he played last night [vs. the San Antonio Spurs], but he took the game very seriously. That’s the type of guy you want to be around."

"I don't know his exact purpose for how hard he went last night, but players that don't have an ego and go out and play hard and have a winning mentality, those are guys you want to be around," he continued.

Zion was worried about eating burgers and drinking soda all day and hooking up with fat hookers What u expect
Lol

[DelAbbot]

:)

Dude Dumars is making a comeback

[DelAbbot]

He drafts pretty well. His trades have been awful. Some bad luck mixed in with Zion and Ingram always hurt.

Drafted really well with Trey Murphy, Dyson Daniels, Herb Jones, Jose Alvarado.

Bad trades.

Zion cost him his job.

[Airmiess]

Masai is inquiring about Zion. Don't ask me how I know.

[ontnut]

He drafts pretty well. His trades have been awful. Some bad luck mixed in with Zion and Ingram always hurt.

Drafted really well with Trey Murphy, Dyson Daniels, Herb Jones, Jose Alvarado.

Bad trades.

Zion cost him his job.

Prime example of how tanking to get that #1 type superstar doesn't always work out the way guys envision it. The Pelicans went from prime #4 overall CP3, almost immediately to #1 overall AD one season later, then picked up a couple recent #2 overall guys in the AD trade, and won the #1 overall Zion lotto 3 years later. 5 #4 overall or better picks, and they won how many playoff series?

Their big downfall I don't think was actually Zion, although clearly it's a huge part - it was largely how they managed what they got from the AD trade. This is how the trade eventually went down:

Lakers Receive:
Anthony Davis,
2023 First Round Swap (Jalen Hood Schfino),
2024 First Round Swap (Dalton Knecht)

Pelicans Receive:
Brandon Ingram
Lonzo Ball (later sign and traded for Tomáš Satoranský, Garrett Temple and a second round pick),
Josh Hart (Traded alongside Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Didi Louzada, Tomáš Satoranský, a protected 2022 first round draft pick (did not convey, becomes 2025 top 4 protected MIL pick), and two future second round draft picks in exchange for Larry Nance Jr, CJ McCollum, and Tony Snell),
De'Andre Hunter (immediately traded to acquire Jaxson Hayes, Nickeil Alexander Walker, and Didi Louzada and the second round pick used to draft Herbert Jones),
2022 First Round Pick (Dyson Daniels),
2023 First Round Swap (Jordan Hawkins),
2025 First Round Pick (Used Alongside Dyson Daniels and Larry Nance JR to acquire Dejounte Murray)

In total roughly they traded:
Outgoing: AD, JHS, Knecht, 2025 MIL 1st rounder, 2025 LAL 1st rounder, 2027 1st rounder pick least favourable of Bucks/Pelicans, 2 2nd rounders
Incoming: McCollum, Herb Jones, Dejounte Murray, Hawkins, Olynyk, Brown, 2026 Pacers 1st, 2nd rounder (Adem Bona),

Herb jones as a 2nd round pick saved the trade a bit, but he looked bad this year before getting hurt, otherwise...what a mediocre to bad return for prime AD.

[Tripod]

Masai is inquiring about Zion. Don't ask me how I know.

I wanna know

[DelAbbot]

He drafts pretty well. His trades have been awful. Some bad luck mixed in with Zion and Ingram always hurt.

Drafted really well with Trey Murphy, Dyson Daniels, Herb Jones, Jose Alvarado.

Bad trades.

Zion cost him his job.

Prime example of how tanking to get that #1 type superstar doesn't always work out the way guys envision it. The Pelicans went from prime #4 overall CP3, almost immediately to #1 overall AD one season later, then picked up a couple recent #2 overall guys in the AD trade, and won the #1 overall Zion lotto 3 years later. 5 #4 overall or better picks, and they won how many playoff series?

Their big downfall I don't think was actually Zion, although clearly it's a huge part - it was largely how they managed what they got from the AD trade. This is how the trade eventually went down:

Lakers Receive:
Anthony Davis,
2023 First Round Swap (Jalen Hood Schfino),
2024 First Round Swap (Dalton Knecht)

Pelicans Receive:
Brandon Ingram
Lonzo Ball (later sign and traded for Tomáš Satoranský, Garrett Temple and a second round pick),
Josh Hart (Traded alongside Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Didi Louzada, Tomáš Satoranský, a protected 2022 first round draft pick (did not convey, becomes 2025 top 4 protected MIL pick), and two future second round draft picks in exchange for Larry Nance Jr, CJ McCollum, and Tony Snell),
De'Andre Hunter (immediately traded to acquire Jaxson Hayes, Nickeil Alexander Walker, and Didi Louzada and the second round pick used to draft Herbert Jones),
2022 First Round Pick (Dyson Daniels),
2023 First Round Swap (Jordan Hawkins),
2025 First Round Pick (Used Alongside Dyson Daniels and Larry Nance JR to acquire Dejounte Murray)

In total roughly they traded:
Outgoing: AD, JHS, Knecht, 2025 MIL 1st rounder, 2025 LAL 1st rounder, 2027 1st rounder pick least favourable of Bucks/Pelicans, 2 2nd rounders
Incoming: McCollum, Herb Jones, Dejounte Murray, Hawkins, Olynyk, Brown, 2026 Pacers 1st, 2nd rounder (Adem Bona),

Herb jones as a 2nd round pick saved the trade a bit, but he looked bad this year before getting hurt, otherwise...what a mediocre to bad return for prime AD.

That's a just a single data point. Doesn't prove either way

[ontnut]

Drafted really well with Trey Murphy, Dyson Daniels, Herb Jones, Jose Alvarado.

Bad trades.

Zion cost him his job.

Prime example of how tanking to get that #1 type superstar doesn't always work out the way guys envision it. The Pelicans went from prime #4 overall CP3, almost immediately to #1 overall AD one season later, then picked up a couple recent #2 overall guys in the AD trade, and won the #1 overall Zion lotto 3 years later. 5 #4 overall or better picks, and they won how many playoff series?

Their big downfall I don't think was actually Zion, although clearly it's a huge part - it was largely how they managed what they got from the AD trade. This is how the trade eventually went down:

Lakers Receive:
Anthony Davis,
2023 First Round Swap (Jalen Hood Schfino),
2024 First Round Swap (Dalton Knecht)

Pelicans Receive:
Brandon Ingram
Lonzo Ball (later sign and traded for Tomáš Satoranský, Garrett Temple and a second round pick),
Josh Hart (Traded alongside Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Didi Louzada, Tomáš Satoranský, a protected 2022 first round draft pick (did not convey, becomes 2025 top 4 protected MIL pick), and two future second round draft picks in exchange for Larry Nance Jr, CJ McCollum, and Tony Snell),
De'Andre Hunter (immediately traded to acquire Jaxson Hayes, Nickeil Alexander Walker, and Didi Louzada and the second round pick used to draft Herbert Jones),
2022 First Round Pick (Dyson Daniels),
2023 First Round Swap (Jordan Hawkins),
2025 First Round Pick (Used Alongside Dyson Daniels and Larry Nance JR to acquire Dejounte Murray)

In total roughly they traded:
Outgoing: AD, JHS, Knecht, 2025 MIL 1st rounder, 2025 LAL 1st rounder, 2027 1st rounder pick least favourable of Bucks/Pelicans, 2 2nd rounders
Incoming: McCollum, Herb Jones, Dejounte Murray, Hawkins, Olynyk, Brown, 2026 Pacers 1st, 2nd rounder (Adem Bona),

Herb jones as a 2nd round pick saved the trade a bit, but he looked bad this year before getting hurt, otherwise...what a mediocre to bad return for prime AD.

That's a just a single data point. Doesn't prove either way

I mean, there's a lot of data points in that string of moves.
They made a bunch of pretty bad trades, and were unable to build around several top 4 picks over a decade+
You could use PHI as another data point if you want, a team that was gifted similar high lotto talent, and fumbled it along the way.

[ArthurVandelay]

Masai is inquiring about Zion. Don't ask me how I know.

Please don’t make Bull **** posts like this