Naismith Hall of Famer’s Joe Dumars has confirmed his contract to become the new president of the Pelican basketball operations in New Orleans, sources told ESPN on Tuesday.
Dumars is a two-time NBA champion as a player and executive who won the Detroit Pistons title, returning to his Louisiana home town and replacing David Griffin as head of the Pelican basketball operations.
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Dumars has been Chief Strategy Officer for the Sacramento Kings from 2019-22 and has been Vice President of Basketball Operations in the NBA League office since 2022.
Dumars has been running pistons since 2000-14, winning the Executive of the Year Award in 2003, and building the 2004 championship team. He made a series of moves propelling the pistons over seven seasons of 50 wins, from 2001-02 to 2007-2008.
Piston has 14 50 wins in franchise history. Half of that lies under Dumars’ leadership.
Drafted by the Pistons in 1985, Dumars spent his entire 14 years as a shooting guard and defensive stopper in the franchise, winning the NBA titles in 1989 and 1990 with “Bad Boys.”
In New Orleans, Dumars is expected to soon become immersed in the current basketball staff. As for the Pelican roster, the franchise certainly has a candid conversation with star forward Zion Williamson at the direction of the team.
Williamson is the No. 1 overall pick in 2019, so he has played just 45% of the potential games against the Pelicans, and has never played in the playoffs after being injured before his team’s postseason appearances in 2022 and 2024.
The Pelicans finished 21-61 this season. This is the fourth in the league, ahead of only the Utah Jazzes (17-65), the Washington Wizards (18-64), and the Charlotte Hornets (19-63).
