Drafting is everything when building a winner. A general manager or President of Basketball Operations' ability to identify talent that can turn into something special or contribute to winning is crucial, especially when drafting in the lottery. With the Pelicans bringing Joe Dumars in to be the team's new front office leader, the way he approaches and selects in the 2025 NBA draft is extremely important.
The Pelicans have the 7th overall pick, and fans are excited about adding another young player to this core, especially with multiple different avenues. But they shouldn't get their hopes up just yet. When looking at past draft picks made by Dumars, all the signs point to a potential draft night deal, and it might be for the best. Let's look deeper.
A rather discouraging history
Before returning to his home state of Louisiana, Dumars worked for the team he spent his whole playing career with, the Detroit Pistons, from 2000 to 2014. During that time, he had incredible success, winning a championship in the 2003-04 season with a team he built. However, the Pistons couldn't extend their window longer than their one title run because he did not draft well.
During the 2003 offseason, the Pistons got the 2nd overall pick and opted to take Darko Milicic over three future legends: Carmelo Anthony, Dwayne Wade, and Chris Bosh. If Dumars could evaluate talent properly, he would have taken any of those guys over Milic, which would have undoubtedly extended their championship window.
But the draft day blunders didn't stop there, as in 2009, he took Austin Daye 15th overall instead of both Jrue Holiday and Jeff Teague. His return to the lottery for the first time since the 2003 draft came in 2010, when Detroit had the 7th overall pick—funny enough, the same spot the Pels are drafting this year.
He took Greg Monroe, who went on to have a solid NBA career, spending 5 of his 10 years in the league with the Pistons. However, Monroe never really reached an all-star level, which hurts when you pass on bot Paul George and Gordon Hayward. Other draft night disasters include taking Brandon Knight 8th over Kemba Walker, Klay Thompson, and Kawhi Leonard in 2011 and taking Kentavious Caldwell-Pope 8th over CJ McCollum and Giannis Antetokounmpo in 2013.
With a bad drafting track record, the Pels should consider trading the 7th overall pick. A team like the Sacramento Kings could be an ideal trade partner when looking around the league. They don't own a single first-round pick in the 2025 draft and have many talented win-now players, like DeMar DeRozan, Malik Monk, and even a younger guy in 3 and D specialist Keon Ellis.
Another potential trade partner is the Nets, who, despite picking 8th, could look to acquire another lottery pick. They have a ton of assets, including guys like Cameron Johnson and four first-round picks in the 2025 NBA draft.