New Orleans Pelicans: Grading David Griffin’s Performance So Far

What David Griffin has done for the New Orleans Pelicans so far…

There wasn’t another team in the NBA that had as much roster churn as the New Orleans Pelicans over the last year.

Since last summer David Griffin has totally overhauled the roster, changing it from a team built around Davis to one built around ascending youth.

Here’s a timeline of Griffin’s moves:

April 17, 2019: David Griffin is hired by the New Orleans Pelicans

May 19, 2019: Griffin hires Trajan Langdon as General Manager. Langdon is a smart, talented young executive who knows the game and the players. This was a savvy hire as several other teams were after Langdon, who was one of the hottest candidates in the league.

June 6, 2019: Griffin drafts Zion Williamson and starts the foundation of the team. David Griffin cannot be given too much credit for this, as the New Orleans Pelicans got super lucky to win the lottery at all, much less in a year that had a consensus superstar.

June 30, 2019: Signed Nicolo Melli. Melli was an under-the-radar player in the EuroLeague who Griffin took a chance on. He saw Mellli had a couple of skills (namely 3-point shooting) that would translate to the NBA and he was right. Melli had a solid first season off the bench for the New Orleans Pelicans.

July 1, 2019: Griffin signed Zion in another no-brainer move.

July 6, 2019: Griffin trades Anthony Davis to the Lakers for Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, Josh Hart and three first round draft picks. Even at the time this looked like a historic haul for the New Orleans Pelicans, but now it looks even better, as all three players have improved. Usually the team who gets the best player wins the trade, but in this case both teams made out well for the short-term and the Pelicans won the trade decisively in the long-term. This trade gave the Pelicans the most exciting young team in the league and the timelines of Ingram and Ball work perfectly with Zoin. Most teams who give up the superstar lose the trade, but this was one of the exceptions, as most Pels fans wouldn’t trade rosters with the Lakers.

July 7, 2019: David Griffin continues to put his stamp on the New Orleans Pelicans. He traded Traded Jordan Bone, Solomon Hill, De’Andre Hunter and a 2023 2nd round draft pick to the Atlanta Hawks for Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Jaxson Hayes, Marcos Louzada Silva and a 2020 1st round draft pick. This one is pending but looks really good for the Pelicans. They may end up with the best player in this trade in either NAW or Hayes AND a first round pick. Nice work, Griffin.

July 15, 2019: Griffin’s busy July continued. He signed veteran J.J. Redick in a coup, as Redick was one of the most sought after free agents and everyone assumed he would go to a contender who needed a 3-point shooter. In a surprising move, Redick chose the New Orleans Pelicans, and a lot of credit has to be given to Griffin.

July 15, 2019: Griffin waives Christian Wood. Oops. This was probably Griffin’s biggest mistake so far, as Wood blew up for Detroit, especially after they traded Andre Drummond.

July 21, 2019:  Griffin signed forward Darius Miller. This move has not worked out for the New Orleans Pelicans thus far, as Miller was injured shortly after signing the deal. The Pelicans have until July 8 to either waive Miller or fully guarantee his $7 million contract. Miller seemed like a good signing at the time, but his injury and salary make this one look bad in retrospect.

July 24, 2019: Griffin signs Josh Gray and Zylan Cheatham to 2-way deals. Cheatham is an intriguing prospect, as he is just 24 and could provide many of the things the Pelicans need from a backup wing. It will be interesting to see if he gets a chance to make the rotation next season.