Joe Dumars Explains Pelicans’ Quiet Offseason

In an interview with Rod Walker of NOLA, executive vice president of basketball operations Joe Dumars explained why the roster hasn’t changed much since the end of last season.

“We were engaged in a lot of conversations with a lot of different teams,” Dumars said. “But at the end of the day, you’ve got to make a determination if this is the right deal or not. You don’t want to make a move for the sake of making a move. It has to be right for us.”

Dumars stated that he has been in contact with rival teams throughout the offseason about potential trades, but he hasn’t been convinced that any of the offers would help the Pelicans improve.

“When you’re presented with deals that you can do, you’ve got to make a determination if this is going to make you better and add what you need,” Dumars added. “The lack of moves being made right now is not from a lack of effort or us deciding we didn’t want to do anything. We’ve engaged with a lot of teams this offseason. But there was just no big deal that I felt was going to make us better for us to pull the trigger on.”

While Dumars doesn’t mention any players by name, it’s easy to assume that a lot of the conversations involved Trey Murphy III and Herbert Jones, who are coveted by numerous teams throughout the league. Dumars has reportedly set a high asking price for both players, and no one has been willing to give him what he wants.

A report last month stated that New Orleans was exploring deals involving swingman Jordan Hawkins, with Memphis being named as a possible destination. Parting with Hawkins’ $7.02MM salary would allow the Pelicans to use their entire $15MM mid-level exception without going into the tax, but for now he remains on the roster.

Walker notes that Dumars suggested in April that he might try to move into the first round of the draft after sending this year’s pick to Atlanta in the controversial 2025 trade for Derik Queen. That didn’t happen, but Dumars said he had opportunities.

“We certainly could have got into the first round,” he said. “But the price was too steep to do it. That’s where discipline comes in. It’s appealing sometimes to say you can get into the first round. But at what cost? Then you have to look at where you’re getting your pick at. Last year we moved into the lottery and got Queen. I thought it was worth it. This year, where we would have landed in the first round wouldn’t have been worth giving up what we had to give up.”

Dumars acknowledges that fans are unhappy with the lack of action this summer, but indicated that he has confidence in the current roster if the team can avoid major injuries. As always, the focal point will be Zion Williamson, who was able to play 62 games last season, the second-highest total of his career.

After Mosley was hired in May, Dumars said he wants to see how Williamson can develop his game under the new head coach. Dumars also shared a message he gave to Williamson about maximizing his potential.

“To be great, you have to be obsessed with this,” Dumars said. “You can’t casually become great in this league. What I’ve seen from him this summer is he’s obsessed with the work he’s putting in. And that is really encouraging for me that he’s putting this type of work in.”