If there was one general manager thought to be on the hottest of seats this season, it was Dell Demps in New Orleans. They have the cornerstone piece everybody wants in Anthony Davis, but the roster put around him wasn’t good enough, wasn’t durable at all, and didn’t fit with the style of play coach Alvin Gentry would prefer. Add to that mix that Mickey Loomis, the Saints GM, was given more oversight powers over the running of the Pelicans for owner Tom Benson, and it seemed like Demps should be polishing up his resume.
Apparently not.
He will be back for a seventh season, reports John Reid at the Times-Picayune.
Demps is expected to meet with the media for a postmortem on the team this week.
He’s got a lot of work to do this summer (including finding a good player at No. 6 in the draft, depending on the lottery).
While the Pelicans have a cornerstone piece that everybody covets in Anthony Davis, they have not put much of a roster around him. They are on the clock to do that now. Demps has been very hit and miss, with a few expensive misses. Last summer Demps did things like re-signing Omer Asik, even though that was a questionable fit with Alvin Gentry’s up-tempo style of play. This summer there is a laundry list of things that need to get done — a three that can take pressure off Anthony Davis (many teams doubled off Dante Cunningham on Davis) and depth in the backcourt.
Injuries certainly helped derail the Pelicans last season, never letting the roster get traction, but it was not a roster that fit the coach’s style from the start. That needs to change. If you bring in Gentry, you want to run, and they need to get the athletes who can do that.