re: Zach Lowe: Pels one of the Winners of Free Agency/Offseason

RealGM:

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The Pelicans are notable for showing some restraint for the first time since drafting Anthony Davis. I wrote a few months back that New Orleans had essentially followed the failed rush-job title contender strategy the Cavaliers employed during LeBron James’s first spell in Cleveland. They drafted their savior and got way out in front of themselves, overpaying free agents and flipping first-rounders for vets.

Fortunately for the Pels, Davis is locked into a long-term deal that gives them plenty of time to fix their mistakes, and that’s what they’ve set about doing this summer. They let Ryan Anderson and Eric Gordon walk and they signed a few of what in this financial climate can be considered economy contracts. Solomon Hill (four years, $48 million), E’twaun Moore (four years, $34 million) and Langston Galloway (two years, $10 million) aren’t bad players, but perhaps most importantly, they’re not hamstringingly expensive. Hill, Moore and Galloway will provide competence at a fair rate, which isn’t unimportant for a team that finished last season trotting out lineups laden with D-Leaguers. If everything breaks right, the Pels will head into the summer of 2017 coming off a decent season with some $30 million in cap space to spend on a fertile free agent class.

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Question going forward- is this patient approach going to last or will they panic trade future assets in a desperate gasp to make the playoffs?

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everyone made fun of fletcher's "hope is not a plan", but hope clearly is now the plan. they've squandered the opportunity when they had a modicum of control over the odds of the outcome...now its strictly hope for good luck. god knows they are due for some

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Question going forward- is this patient approach going to last or will they panic trade future assets in a desperate gasp to make the playoffs?

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I think it lasts if they do well enough to not get fired. Last season was a rude awakening, even the most positive fans seemed to realize that this roster was just never going to be much better than a 5-8 seed. They appear to have changed course, it's not unheard of for this organization, just look at the Saints and Ireland. Most fans would say they waited too long to do that, but they did realize what they were doing wasn't working and changed. I don't see why that can't be the case with the Pels.

Gentry has Chamipionship experience as an assistant, has coached multiple MVP level players and been part of multiple contending teams. Ferry built around LeBron and rebuilt the Hawks. Erman was with the Celtics when they won the title and is "credited" with being the architect of the Warriors championship level defense. That's a lot more credibility to tell ownership things need to change than Monty, especially when Monty and Demps apparently weren't on the same page.