Danny Ferry returns to the NBA as an adviser with New Orleans
Former Atlanta Hawks president Danny Ferry, a year removed from being let go by that franchise and two years removed from a scandal surrounding his free agent courtship of Luol Deng, has been hired as an adviser to New Orleans Pelicans general manager Dell Demps.
[Follow Dunks Don’t Lie on Tumblr: The best slams from all of basketball]
Ferry, who constructed the team with the East’s best record in 2014-15 prior to being terminated after a season spent on indefinite leave, will reportedly split time between his home in Atlanta and New Orleans.
The Undefeated’s Marc J. Spears was the first to report the news, and the Pelicans sent out a press release later Wednesday:
“I am excited to announce Danny Ferry has accepted our offer to join the New Orleans Pelicans basketball operations staff as a special advisor,” said Demps. “Danny’s experience, insight and achievements will be a welcomed addition to the Pelicans as we continue our quest to improve the team.”
Ferry was asked to leave the Hawks in the wake of a reported power struggle among ownership, one that led to the release of transcripts quoting the former Spurs and Cavaliers executive quoting an alleged Cleveland Cavaliers source as saying Deng (who eventually signed with the Miami Heat) “had a little African in him.”
The Hawks GM, quoting the source, went on:
“Not in a bad way, but he’s a guy who would have a nice store out front, but sell you counterfeit stuff out of the back.”
Atlanta’s lead personnel executive, in an absence of leadership, had no issue utilizing “scouting” reports like these as he made his case to sign Deng:
“He’s a good guy on the cover but he’s an African. He has a little two-step in him = says what you like to hear, but behind closed doors he could be killing you. Con isn’t bad, but it’s there. African-like, store front looks great but there is a black market section in the back. Chicago thought he was good for their culture, but an outlier.
“Teammates liked him, but he had less impact on the locker room than you would think. He complained about things like not enough jerseys in the team store and that his or that his bobblehead was last during the year. Has some con and a sense of entitlement. Luol kind of treated Cleveland like a pit-stop after the trade, where he probably became more protective of his body and focused on his contract because he didn’t know his long-term plan. He said some things to the media privately but denied them publically said it wasn’t him. He’s not terrible, but you’ve got to know that stuff is there with him.”
Ferry was then asked to leave the Hawks prior to a year that should have left him amongst the league leaders in Executive of the Year polling.
It took awhile, but Ferry did eventually own his comments upon his departure from Atlanta. Two African-American NBA executives rushed to his defense, and Demps (who is African-American) clearly regards his choice of words in the Luol Deng discussion as a one-time misstep and not a statement of character.
The question never was about whether Ferry is racist, though, because all in the NBA know that he most certainly is not. The questions had to do with his decision-making and leadership qualities, and as a lead executive he failed his team in giving any credibility to that reported Cleveland scout’s “analysis.”
What the NBA does know is that for the overwhelming bulk of the past 26 years Danny Ferry has worked as a respected player, scout and executive. In pure basketball terms he has made some player and coaching personnel missteps along the way, but he is generally regarded as basketball mind worth keeping around – as was the case with his father Bob Ferry, who for years ran the Washington Bullets.
Under Demps, whom Ferry worked with in San Antonio, he should find the perfect spot to rehabilitate his image, while trying to create a winner yet again.
– – – – – – –
Kelly Dwyer is an editor for Ball Don’t Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @KDonhoops
