The New Orleans Pelicans wrapped up their 2024-25 NBA season with a lot of questions surrounding their franchise. After a disastrous campaign that saw them fall well short of their aspirations, the team's future was thrown completely into flux. Suddenly, they were a mismatched and expensive roster built to win now, but were headed to the lottery instead of the playoffs.
Couple that with the fact that they're a team built around an extremely talented but equally injury-prone superstar that just had their entire season derailed due to health, and not just Zion's, and it makes perfect sense why the Pelicans endured a major identity crisis this past year. Their incoming lottery pick gives them a chance at landing a transformative prospect, someone like Duke's Cooper Flagg or Baylor's VJ Edgecombe who could turn the fortunes of their franchise around. It also gives them the opportunity to reset their entire roster and rebuild around a promising asset, though.
Deciding between using their pick to add to their current core, trading it for an established asset, or shifting the team's identity entirely around the draft is the kind of impossible choice that the Pelicans' new President of Basketball Operations Joe Dumars will have to make all of the time. He'll have plenty of tough decisions ahead of him in New Orleans, however, it appears that some of his most difficult deliberations have already been made for him.
Pelicans ownership has reportedly chosen Willie Green over Zion Williamson
After a season as disastrous as the one the Pelicans just had, there's often a scapegoat that needs to be offered as a sacrifice in order to renew the fans' faith and interest. Many thought that it might be Head Coach Willie Green, whose seat seemed to be a bit warm already coming into the season, and coaches are often the first to go during a disappointing regime.
As it turns out, the Pelicans chose former Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations David Griffin as their designated scapegoat instead, firing him the very next day after their season ended. It took them less than a full day to hire Joe Dumars as their new top shot-caller, too.
It wasn't known at the time, but by picking Dumars over Griff, the Pelicans franchise was making a couple of other personnel decisions too, perhaps even more impactful ones. For example, it's rumored that Dumars's hiring came with a mandate for the new executive to trade Zion Williamson. Dumars has been said to be interested in mending the franchise's connection with Z, so we'll have to see how that situation ultimately plays out, but, apparently, ownership is ready to cut ties with the former 2019 number one pick.
While Gayle Benson and co. have seemingly given up on the Zion experiment, there's one Pelican that they haven't wavered on: Coach Willie Green. According to HoopsHype's Michael Scotto, New Orleans is keen on keeping Green on their sidelines. They'll have their work cut out for them to fend off his potential suitors such as the Phoenix Suns, but the top brass has made their desire to keep Willie Green in charge clear.
Per the same report, David Griffin wanted to fire Green earlier this season and was denied by ownership. Now that the dust has settled, it appears that Willie Green has emerged among the ruins of the previous Pelicans era, with Griff a confirmed casualty and Zion Williamson expected to join the list.