New Orleans Pelicans Overhaul Medical and Performance Staff, Bringing New Vision

The New Orleans Pelicans announced two significant hires today, naming David Cosgrave as Vice President of Health and Performance, and Joe Sharpe as Head Athletic Trainer. Cosgrave and Sharpe will help anchor a rebuilt medical and performance department that saw 13 of 16 positions turn over since the end of the season.

“David Cosgrave and Joe Sharpe bring a level of professionalism and experience that immediately strengthens our organization and supports our commitment to build a fully integrated, best-in-class medical and performance team,” said Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations, Joe Dumars in the press release. “Both have demonstrated throughout their careers a disciplined approach and strong attention to detail that aligns with the standards we value. Their ability to execute at a high level will have a tremendous impact on our day-to-day operations and long-term success. We are excited to have them on board.”

The Pelicans began sweeping changes at the end of the season, parting ways with the majority of their performance staff, with a few staffers opting to leave independently for other opportunities. The restructuring spanned athletic training, strength and conditioning, performance science, mental health, nutrition and rehabilitation. In the interim, the team’s G-League affiliate training staff has been brought in to assist with player care while the full hiring process continues — a practice sources confirm is not uncommon across the league during the offseason.

“The goal is to elevate the overall standard of medical and performance support across the board,” one person with knowledge of the Pelicans’ plans shared. “The broad vision is centered on integration and proactive care, with investments being made in personnel as well as advanced technologies, data-driven monitoring systems, and evidence-based recovery protocols — including areas like injury prevention and individualized performance planning.”

David Cosgrave

Cosgrave was brought in by Dumars for the 2025-26 season as a consultant, drawing on a background in professional soccer both in Europe and MLS. After a year embedded within the organization evaluating its medical infrastructure, he transitions now into a full-time role as Vice President of Health and Performance.

In the statement released by the team, Cosgrave will oversee “all aspects of health, sports medicine and performance, working closely with basketball operations leadership to optimize player availability, enhance performance infrastructure and support the organization’s long-term competitive objectives.” The role is similar to one held previously by Aaron Nelson.

Dumars and the Pelicans have keyed in on player availability as paramount to success moving forward, and Cosgrave is tasked with leading that execution. At Orlando City SC, where Cosgrave most recently served as Senior Director of Sports Medicine and High Performance, his department achieved player availability rates of 94 percent in 2022 and 97 percent in 2023 alongside a 100 percent return-to-play rate following injury and surgery. For a franchise that has watched Zion Williamson and other key players miss significant time throughout their career, those numbers are precisely the kind of outcomes the Pelicans are trying to manufacture.

Cosgrave spent over 12 years in the English Premier League, before contributing to one of FC Copenhagen’s most successful periods from 2014-2021. Despite his extensive time in the world of professional soccer, the challenges of the NBA are new and unique.

The European soccer model operates on a fundamentally different calendar and physical demand structure than an 82-game NBA season, and adapting those systems requires time and organizational buy-in. Having Cosgrave embedded within the organization for a full year before taking a formal role was a deliberate decision, and gave him the opportunity to learn the rhythms of professional basketball before stepping into leadership. To assist Cosgrave, the Pelicans have brought in NBA lifer, Joseph Sharpe.

Joseph Sharpe

Sharpe has spent virtually his entire professional life inside the NBA. He began his NBA career in 2002 with the Minnesota Timberwolves and would quickly progress to the Head Athletic Trainer role with the Charlotte Bobcats for four seasons. He then spent a decade as senior athletic trainer with the Oklahoma City Thunder — one of the league’s most consistently well-run franchises — before serving six years as Director of Healthcare and Sports Performance with the Charlotte Hornets.

Across more than 20 years, Sharpe has developed a reputation as one of the most respected figures in NBA athletic training. He has served as an athletic trainer with USA Basketball across multiple gold medal runs and as a chairman of the National Basketball Athletic Trainers Association.

The Pelicans aim to complement Cosgrave’s systemic and analytical approach with Sharpe’s deep NBA experience.

An Uncertain Past Year

The backdrop to these hires is a season filled with injuries that left the previous medical staff on uncertain footing with Joe Dumars. There are a few important aspects to note.

Near the start of Dumars’ tenure, guard Dejounte Murray made inflammatory public claims about not receiving proper treatment and table time. It prompted questions from Dumars about processes across the organization. As I reported in June, members of the organization were surprised by Murray's characterization at the time. But the incident created early tension between new management and a department that would spend the rest of the season trying to prove its value. In situations like these, it can be difficult for employees to combat narratives set in public forums, leaving internal perspectives without a meaningful platform to respond.

Furthering this initial tension, when Cosgrave was first hired as a consultant, his specific role and responsibilities were not broadly communicated within the organization. This created some uncertainty among staff about his purpose and scope. It is a dynamic the organization has since acknowledged.

By the time the season ended, many on the staff believed their fate had been sealed regardless of their performance. “It felt like no matter how good of a job they did, or how much the players liked working with them, the outcome was going to be the same,” one source with direct knowledge of the situation said.

The Road Ahead

The organization says it plans to fill all remaining vacancies, with the full structure expected to be in place when training camp begins. Kurt Joseph was recently hired as Director of Strength and Conditioning, while Peter Youngman (Assistant Athletic Trainer) and Ingrid Saballos (Massage Therapist) round out the early wave of new additions on the performance side.

The organization has made clear Dumars has no intention of being constrained by budget in rebuilding the medical and performance department, and is prepared to spend what is required to bring in the caliber of people the organization is targeting. The hires of Cosgrave and Sharpe reflect that commitment.

The new performance staff walks in without the relationships their predecessors spent years building. Learning the roster — who needs what, how players prefer to be treated, what each individual’s history looks like — is a process that cannot be rushed. For a team with lofty aspirations and a complicated injury history, how fast that familiarity develops will prove consequential in achieving their goals next season.