NEW ORLEANS — The New Orleans Pelicans have employed Joe Dumars — a former NBA champion as each a participant and an government with the Detroit Pistons — as their government vp of basketball operations.
Dumars, 61, takes over for David Griffin, who was fired on Monday after a six-year stint that coincided with the drafting of energy ahead Zion Williamson in 2019.
“I’ve quite a lot of respect for what Joe has already completed as a participant and government, however extra importantly, I love his character and management,” Pelicans proprietor Gayle Benson, who additionally owns the NFL’s New Orleans Saints, stated in a written assertion coinciding with Wednesday’s announcement. “His huge expertise and relationships all through the NBA, alongside together with his sturdy management qualities, may have an amazing affect on our group.”
Dumars’ choice to affix the Pelicans represents a homecoming of kinds. He grew up in Natchitoches, Louisiana, and performed school basketball for McNeese State in Lake Charles, Louisiana.
“That is really a full circle second,” Dumars stated in a written assertion launched by the Pelicans. “I grew up as a Saints fan and the primary AAU basketball crew I performed on at 16 years previous was primarily based in New Orleans, so this chance may be very particular to me on a private degree.”
Dumars’ first order of enterprise will probably be to resolve whether or not to retain coach Willie Inexperienced, who has a yr remaining on his contract. Subsequent, he’ll must resolve whether or not the Pelicans proceed to construct across the injury-plagued Williamson — who has missed extra video games than he’s performed — or deal him elsewhere and transfer in a brand new route.
When he performs, the six-foot-six, 284-pound Williamson has been as dazzling and productive as anticipated when he was drafted first total out of Duke. He has averaged 24.7 factors in 214 video games. However accidents have sidelined him for 258 common season video games, in addition to each post-season contest New Orleans has performed since he was drafted.
“There’s numerous expertise on this roster,” Dumars stated. “My imaginative and prescient is to construct a disciplined crew that’s constructed on toughness, sensible decision-making and a no-excuses mindset.
“I’m proud to have grown up in Louisiana and understand how passionate, resilient and hard we’re as a neighborhood,” Dumars added. “These traits would be the basis of our crew’s tradition.”
Dumars performed guard for the Detroit groups that received NBA titles in 1989 and 1990. He additionally ran the Pistons entrance workplace after they received one other title in 2004. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Corridor of Fame in 2006.
Since leaving the Pistons in 2014, Dumars has labored in Sacramento’s entrance workplace and most not too long ago served as government vp and head of basketball operations for the NBA. The NBA’s sportsmanship award bears his identify.
“Joe was somebody I used to be very aware of, having handled him over the previous few years at league conferences,” Benson stated. “My choice as we speak was not rapidly made, and never with out spending beneficial time speaking to gamers, coaches and league officers.”
