Did the Pelicans negotiate in good faith?
Did the Pelicans try to embarrass the Lakers out of spite?
David Grubb:
"I don’t believe spite is the correct term. This was fire meeting fire. The Pelicans were insulted by the public nature of the negotiations and the low ball offer that the Lakers started with. Look at the package that the Clippers got for Tobias Harris (three players, two first-rounders, and two second-rounders), and compare that to what Los Angeles offered initially. There was a feeling that the Lakers were trying to bully the Pelicans in conjunction with Rich Paul. So, the Pelicans used the leverage that they had, which is time."
Real Lakers fans should not be surprised by the deal the Clippers got before the trade deadline. The executive running the shop across the hall is Jerry West. Lake Show Life featured him being a factor before the season even started.
Los Angeles Lakers suffering from the Jerry West effect?
The Los Angeles Lakers got LeBron James this offseason! What's next? Reports are going around that some free agents want to play for the Clippers...Why?
Let’s be clear here, it was no secret that Dell Demps was standing on thin ice with a heating lamp on directly above him. The Pelicans had absolutely no confidence in Demps making a deal of this magnitude, especially if he has to report to a football executive.
Plus, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith was very blunt in what was going on around the league about what other influences that were factors.
I was told — eventually — Pelicans GM Dell Demps would have been FIRED had he made the Anthony Davis trade! pic.twitter.com/cMn6Nhv4EN
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) February 8, 2019
According to ESPN, league sources believe…
"The Pelicans are eager to conduct a search that will attract a top basketball executive who will take on a more prominent role in the franchise. Benson is promising to pursue a top-level GM to revitalize a franchise that’s coming to a crossroads with the Davis trade."
Look for former Cleveland Cavaliers GM David Griffin to be a front-runner. LeBron James should know him, he was the executive that built the Cavaliers 2016 championship team.
Speaking of LeBron…