Prior to the Anthony Davis trade that brought the big man to Los Angeles, the Lakers and their general manager Rob Pelinka were seen as a dysfunctional unit. Every day there seemed to be more and more negative stories coming out. Once AD arrived in LA, the team's fortunes changed greatly as the Lakers skyrocketed to first place in the Western Conference. All of Pelinka's deals became the stuff of genius, and now, the team is just one win away from the title.
Unfortunately for Pelinka and Lakers fans, these efforts were not recognized recently, as the Executive Of The Year award was given to Lawrence Frank of the Clippers. For context, the Clippers traded their entire future away for Paul George, who amounted to very little in the playoffs. Understandably, Lakers player Jared Dudley was upset with the decision and took to Twitter where he laid the case for his boss.
"This is a Joke right???? Over Rob Pelinka??? Stop it!!!! AD trade, signing Dwight Howard, Avery Bradley, and the best trade deadline move was signing Markieff Morris. Oh yeah and the Lakers was the best team in the west and 2nd overall.. Said we gave up to much for AD," Dudley wrote.
If the Lakers do win the title this season, then the Pelinka slander will end swiftly. As for the Executive of the Year award, well, sometimes the media just gets it wrong.