Only nine months after the New Orleans Pelicans’ first-round playoff series sweep of the Portland Trail Blazers in 2018, Anthony Davis submitted a trade request.
The Pelicans had won 48 games in 2017-18, the most in Davis’ New Orleans tenure. In the 2018 offseason, the team signed Julius Randle. According to Randle, Davis did not make it a secret he was headed out the door.
Julius Randle says Anthony Davis told him “I’m outta here” after New Orleans landed the #1 pick
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) March 21, 2024
“I was like ‘I’m outta here too’” ????????????
(???? @Roommates__Show / https://t.co/2sf6HnZDTn) pic.twitter.com/CTttspyXEQ
Davis having his most success in a Pelicans uniform and then requesting a trade less than a year later was emblematic of New Orleans’ history as a franchise up to that point: brief success followed by long fallow periods.
Since taking over in 2019, executive vice president David Griffin has talked about building something sustainable. In 2021, the Pelicans hired Willie Green to be their coach. Green immediately began talking about wanting to build a “program.”
“A sustainable, winning culture,” Green said. “It feels like we are trending in a good way right now.”
Last week, the Pelicans picked up their 42nd win of the season in a beatdown of the Brooklyn Nets. That guaranteed the Pelicans consecutive seasons with a winning record for the second time in franchise history.
In 2007-08, Chris Paul finished runner-up in MVP voting and captained New Orleans to 56 wins. In 2008–09, Paul’s Hornets won 49 games. New Orleans hadn’t achieved back-to-back winning seasons since then until last week, when a team coached by Paul’s friend and former teammate joined the club.
“We are trying to build starting with our foundation,” Green said. “It starts with the people we bring into our building. That contributes to having a healthy program. High-character people who bring a ton of energy. Who are hard workers. That’s a program we are trying to build.”
Drafting well and developing talent in-house is critical to program-building. The 2021 draft was a turning point for the Pelicans. They swung a trade with the Memphis Grizzlies that involved them moving back from the No. 10 selection to No. 17. New Orleans chose Trey Murphy at that spot. In the second round, the Pelicans scooped up Herb Jones with the 35th pick. Later that night, the team signed Jose Alvarado as an undrafted free agent.
By the end of their rookie seasons, Murphy, Jones and Alvarado had all established themselves as rotation players for the Pelicans. Murphy is a flamethrower of a shooter who has already flirted with 50-40-90 efficiency marks. Jones is on the short list of the NBA’s best perimeter defenders. Alvarado is an energy shifter and chaos creator who plays 6 inches taller than he actually is.
On Friday, the Pelicans beat the Miami Heat by 23 points even though they got a combined four points from their two best players. Brandon Ingram was unable to play after injuring his left knee in a nasty fall he took in Thursday’s game. Zion Williamson, New Orleans’ leading scorer, had a rare off night. He made two field goals.
The Pelicans won in dominant fashion anyway because they got 30 points from CJ McCollum, 45 points from their bench, and they played their usual style of high-energy, low-mistake defense. Alvarado and Naji Marshall — two of New Orleans' undrafted finds — combined to score 30 points.
“This is how you build a winning franchise,” said Larry Nance Jr., who contributed six points and nine rebounds off the bench. “Those franchises that go from low wins to 60 wins, that’s not sustainable. You build a successful franchise, a successful roster, a successful team by steadily growing. Steady improvement. Keeping the core together. And really, being willing and able to play alongside each other. That’s what Denver did. That’s what Milwaukee had done. Golden State. You build. You start slow, and you build.”