David Griffin’s Seat is Melting in New Orleans

The western conference is open for the contenders, mid-level teams and those who narrowly missed the Playoffs in 2021. This comes amid uncertainty facing the Los Angeles Clippers and the Golden State Warriors heading into next season.  Kawhi Leonard of the Clippers is out for the foreseeable future, recovering from an ACL tear, and Klay Thompson of the Warriors hasn’t played in a meaningful game in two seasons.  

Healthy, both of these gentlemen are the real deal. However, due to the nature of their injuries, it’s challenging to imagine Leonard at 100% this season if he decides to return, or Thompson still among the NBA’s top defenders after missing so much time. 

A team that must emerge from the shadows to capitalize on a potential weaker pool is the New Orleans Pelicans. Executive Vice President David Griffin might age in dog years this season if his squad underperforms and misses the playoffs for the third consecutive time in his tenure.   From 2019/2020 until now, the Pelicans have had a realistic chance, considering the talent available, of making the postseason.  

It’s worth remembering the Pelicans had the best odds among the Grizzlies, Kings and Trail Blazers of winning the eighth spot before the seeding games in the bubble, per FiveThirtyEight.com.  Additionally, Griffin bungled the hiring of the previous head coach in choosing Stan Van Gundy, who undermined the team’s best playmaker, Lonzo Ball, relegating the Chino Hills star into a 3-and-D role.

On top of that, at Williamson’s final press conference of the season, a reporter asked the first-year All-Star if he concurred with Griffin’s assessment the team needed to revamp basketball IQ, toughness and shooting.  Williamson didn’t think those were the only frailties the Pelicans needed to improve.  “I don’t think those are the only three things.  I think there’s definitely some other aspects as a team, with the coaches ….”

This summer, Griffin’s performance in free agency has been underwhelming, and the only significant move he’s made apart from hiring a new coach is trading Steven Adams to Memphis for Jonas Valančiūnas.  The swap is an upgrade at center, but the team will be very dependent on Brandon Ingram’s marksmanship to avoid clogging the spacing of the frontcourt.

Griffin didn’t do his rookie head coach Willie Green any favors either when he came up empty-handed in the pursuit of Kyle Lowry.  In his fruitless effort to sign Toronto’s beloved Raptor, Ball ditched town for Chicago, and in return the Pelicans received Tomas Satoransky, Garrett Temple, a 2024 second-round pick plus cash considerations, per the Associated Press.  

Ball should have been valued.  His loss hurts the Pelicans in two of Griffin’s preferred three categories:  Basketball IQ and shooting.  Nonetheless, Williamson told reporters at the same press conference he would like to see Zo come back.  If Griffin’s performance were ranked on a scale, the letter grade he would receive is an L.

The 2021/2022 campaign has colossal ramifications for the Pelicans.  At the end of the season, Williamson is eligible for his rookie contract extension, but is it a guarantee that he signs it, or at least immediately?  In June, the Athletic reported members of Williamson’s family would like to see him play elsewhere.  The Pelicans won’t have the negotiating advantage if they miss the playoffs again this year because it would mean zero trips in three tries during Williamson’s time in the Big Easy. 

Pink Floyd once sang, “Every year is getting shorter, never seem to find the time….”  For the sake of the Pelicans fans, I hope they make the postseason climb.