New Orleans Pelicans Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Southwest Notes: Williamson, Rockets, Winslow, Mavs

July 12th, 2020 at 5:57pm CST by JD Shaw

Pelicans star Zion Williamson primarily worked on fundamentals and conditioning during the NBA’s months-long hiatus, according to Andrew Lopez of ESPN.com.

Williamson spent significant time with his stepfather, Lee Anderson, harping on the core principles of his game in recent weeks. With the 2019/20 NBA season officially restarting in Orlando, Williamson is looking to build on what’s already been an impressive rookie campaign.

“His stepfather did a fantastic job of working him out every day, of making him be in good conditioning when we got him back,” head coach Alvin Gentry said. “He’s made a lot of strides in his shooting, I think. Although we weren’t together, he did a lot to improve his game.”

Williamson is averaging 23.6 points, 6.8 rebounds and 29.7 minutes in 19 games this season, displaying unprecedented athleticism and power in his first year with the team. New Orleans is tentatively scheduled to have its first scrimmage on Wednesday, July 22 against Brooklyn.

Here are some other notes out of the Southwest Division:

Rockets stars Russell Westbrook and James Harden are expected to arrive in Orlando soon, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle writes. Houston had its first team practice on Saturday without the star duo, with head coach Mike D’Antoni hinting that the two All-Star guards will likely join the club in the next few days.
Evan Barnes of the Memphis Commercial Appeal examines how Justise Winslow fits in with the Grizzlies, particularly under head coach Taylor Jenkins’ offensive system. Jenkins indicated that Winslow will likely be used in a play-making role during the NBA’s resumed season, Barnes writes. “His versatility is really going to come out in our style of play,” Jenkins said. “That’s why I talk about him being just a great fit and a perfect fit for our system because he can play multiple positions on offense.”
Callie Caplan of the Dallas Morning News explores how much playoff experience will matter for the Mavericks, whose top two players (Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis) have yet to see postseason action in their careers. The typical home and road atmospheres that teams usually encounter in the playoffs naturally won’t be the same this year due to COVID-19. “It’s hard for me to predict that, how it’s going to be,” Porzingis admitted. “This is going to be my first experience and no matter what the circumstances are, I’m going to try to get the most out of it and get the most experience and play the highest level basketball I’ve ever played.”

Pelicans’ Gentry Cleared To Travel To NBA Campus

July 8th, 2020 at 11:24am CST by Luke Adams

Pelicans head coach Alvin Gentry has been cleared to travel with his team to the NBA’s Walt Disney World campus, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter). According to Andrew Lopez of ESPN (Twitter link), Gentry received the call from the NBA today just minutes before the Pelicans were set to board their plane to Orlando.

Gentry, who is 65 years old, is one of the head coaches who has received extra scrutiny from team doctors and the NBA due to potentially heightened health risks if he contracts the coronavirus. The restart agreement gives the league the right to prohibit certain red-flagged individuals from accompanying their teams to Disney.

The NBA has assured coaches they won’t be red-flagged based on their ages alone. However, if there are also underlying health issues that will put them at greater risk, they can be held out of the restart — that was the case for Lakers assistant Lionel Hollins, for instance.

Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich, 71, is expected to travel to the NBA campus on Thursday, per Mike Finger of The San Antonio Express-News. Rockets head coach Mike D’Antoni, 69, also said this week that he hasn’t heard anything suggesting he’ll be prohibited from heading to Orlando (Twitter link via Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle). D’Antoni is still waiting the official OK from the league, but there’s optimism he’ll get it, tweets Wojnarowski.

While the Pelicans got good news on Gentry, the club will be without associate head coach Jeff Bzdelik won’t be with the club this summer. He decided to stay in New Orleans and work remotely after consulting with team doctors and CDC regulations.

In addition to Bzdelik, the Pelicans will be missing assistant Jamelle McMillan, who is staying behind to care for his newborn son, according to Lopez (Twitter link).

Pelicans Notes: Thornwell, Replacement, Favors

July 7th, 2020 at 5:00pm CST by Luke Adams

When the Pelicans announced on Monday that they’d signed Sindarius Thornwell, they indicated in their press release that the guard is a substitute player, but didn’t reveal which player on the roster he’d be replacing. More than 24 hours later, we have no further clarity on which New Orleans player will be supplanted by Thornwell.

According to John Hollinger of The Athletic (Twitter link), Thornwell is replacing a player who tested positive for the coronavirus and the Pelicans can’t name that player for privacy reasons. The team previously announced that three players tested positive for COVID-19, but the identities of those players wasn’t reported. Still, it will likely just be a matter of time until we know which Pelican won’t participate in the summer restart, if only by the process of elimination.

Pelicans center Derrick Favors, whose contract expires at season’s end, admitted today that he weighed the risk of suffering a pre-free-agency injury this summer before ultimately deciding to play. “I definitely thought about it,” Favors said, per Will Guillory of The Athletic (Twitter link). “But I trust my body and I trust what I’ve done.”

Free Agency Won’t Deter Ingram From Playing In Restart

July 6th, 2020 at 8:43pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Top restricted free agent Brandon Ingram never considered sitting out the remainder of the season, according to USA Today’s Mark Medina.

The Pelicans‘ star forward was enjoying a breakout season prior to the stoppage of play in March, averaging 24.3 PPG, 6.3 RPG and 4.3 APG in his fourth NBA campaign after being included in the blockbuster Anthony Davis swap. He averaged 18.3 PPG, 5.1 RPG and 3.0 APG in his third and final season with the Lakers.

New Orleans will try to hold off five other teams during the restart and secure the eighth and final Western Conference playoff berth. Ingram felt that he couldn’t let his teammates down despite a big payday looming this offseason.

“I didn’t look at it as if I had a choice of going or not. My teammates knew that I didn’t question it or anything. I just wanted to play basketball at the end of the day,” Ingram said. “I’m going to do it and let my teammates know I’m there 110%. I have to be there. It wasn’t a question.”

The Pelicans will extend a $9,481,458 qualifying offer to Ingram to make him a restricted free agent. He’s unquestionably the top RFA on the market, though few teams have significant salary cap space. Ingram could also gamble and sign the QA, then become an unrestricted free agent next offseason.

Ingram isn’t ready to declare that he’ll stick around New Orleans long-term.

“That is definitely a question that will be answered after the season. But how I feel right now? I feel really good about this team,” he said. “I like where I’m at. But that’s a decision that is going to have a lot of factors after the season.”

Ingram does see a bright future for the team and is excited to find out what his teammates can accomplish on the Orlando campus.

“We’re very excited. We’re building some momentum into getting better each and every day,” Ingram said. “Of course we haven’t reached where we want to go. It’s a long ways away. But I think we’re getting steps and steps closer to where we want to get to be at.”

Ingram’s last season in Los Angeles was cut short after team doctors discovered he had a blood clot called deep venous thrombosis. The Pelicans declined to give him a rookie scale extension last year in part because of health concerns.

He left no doubt about his health this season while making his first All-Star appearance.

Pelicans Sign Sindarius Thornwell As Substitute Player

July 6th, 2020 at 6:25pm CST by Luke Adams

6:25pm: Miller has been officially ruled out as he continues his rehab from right Achilles surgery, ESPN’s Andrew Lopez tweets.

1:04pm: The Pelicans have officially signed free agent guard Sindarius Thornwell for the rest of the season as a substitute player, the team announced today in a press release.

Thornwell, 25, was selected with the 48th overall pick in the 2017 draft and spent the first two years of his professional career with the Clippers. He appeared in 137 total games for Los Angeles, averaging 2.5 PPG and 1.3 RPG on .415/.342/.689 shooting in a limited role (10.7 MPG).

After being waived by the Clippers last July, Thornwell spent the 2019/20 season with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers in the G League, averaging 9.2 PPG, 5.3 RPG, and 4.5 APG in 40 games (28.9 MPG). The 6’5″ guard is considered a strong perimeter defender.

It remains to be seen which player on the Pelicans roster is being replaced by Thornwell. According to Christian Clark of NOLA.com (Twitter link), swingman Darius Miller isn’t traveling to Orlando with the team due to his ongoing Achilles recovery, but an injured player like Miller isn’t eligible to be replaced by a substitute player.

At this point, a substitute player can only be signed to replace a player who voluntarily opts out of the NBA’s restart or who has tested positive for COVID-19. No Pelicans players have announced they plan to opt out, but three tested positive for the coronavirus in June. We’ll have to wait for further updates to confirm which player is being replaced by Thornwell and why — the player in question will be ineligible to return this season.

Southwest Notes: Williamson, Mavs, Spurs, Miller

July 5th, 2020 at 5:15pm CST by JD Shaw

Pelicans star Zion Williamson is ready to continue his impressive rookie season when the NBA resumes in Orlando this month, explaining his thoughts on the team’s mindset in a media availability posted on NBA.com.

“That’s a simple answer – we’re trying to make a playoff push, and we’re trying to get back into our full game condition within those eight [seeding] games,” Williamson said.

Williamson played just 19 games before the NBA suspended its season in mid-March, averaging 23.6 points, 6.8 rebounds and 29.7 minutes per contest. He’s since taken a leadership role with the club, recognizing the importance of being successful both on the court and off.

“I’m preparing by bonding with my teammates once again,” Williamson said. “Talking to them, saying ‘We’re going to get through this,’ and we’re just going to battle the [mental challenges surrounding this]. As far as me also getting ready for that, it’s just conditioning and honing my skills.”

New Orleans is tied for the 10th best record in the Western Conference with Sacramento at 28-36, trailing the No. 8 seed Grizzlies by 3.5 games. The team’s first game in Orlando will commence on July 30 against Utah.

Here are some other notes from the Southwest Division today:

Mavericks big man Kristaps Porzingis is confident the team can surprise people during the NBA’s resumed season, Callie Caplan of the Dallas Morning News writes. Porzingis is holding per-game averages of 19.2 points and 9.5 rebounds after taking a full year off to rehab from a torn ACL.
Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News explores how the Spurs are mentally preparing themselves for the rest of the season. San Antonio owns the third-worst record of all 22 teams heading to Orlando, going 27-36 through 63 games on the season. “I think we’re all aware of the risk [of resuming play],” Spurs center Jakob Poeltl said. “Everybody individually had to really think about the situation. From what I’m hearing, the NBA is going above and beyond to create the safest possible environment for us. I’m hearing that possibly it’s going to be safer for us to be in that bubble than maybe even being at home. But it’s definitely still a risk.”
Pelicans forward Darius Miller is unsure if he’ll be able to play in Orlando due to COVID-19, Will Guillory of The Athletic tweets. Miller has been unable to play 3-on-3 or 5-on-5 due to the virus. He suffered an Achilles tear in the summer of 2019, last appearing in an NBA game during the 2018/19 season.

Top Pelicans Assistant Bzdelik Won’t Travel To Orlando

July 3rd, 2020 at 4:11pm CST by Luke Adams

Pelicans associate head coach Jeff Bzdelik won’t accompany the team to the NBA’s campus in Florida for the league’s return to play, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter).

A defensive specialist and the top assistant on Alvin Gentry‘s staff, Bzdelik is 67 years old. He decided to stay in New Orleans after consulting with team doctors and CDC regulations, tweets Andrew Lopez of ESPN. Woj notes that the Pelicans are “supportive” of the decision.

Bzdelik will continue to work remotely and will be able to advise the team on defensive strategy from New Orleans, sources tell Lopez.

A report earlier this week indicated that older coaches wouldn’t be red-flagged based on their age alone. However, that doesn’t mean they won’t be permitted to opt out, or that certain coaches won’t be red-flagged for health reasons, as 66-year-old Lakers assistant Lionel Hollins was.

According to Lopez (via Twitter), no decision has been made yet on the status of Gentry, who is 65 years old.

Gentry: Zion Can Pick Up Where He Left Off

July 2nd, 2020 at 6:46pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry is confident rookie star Zion Williamson will continue to make a big impact once plays resumes, he indicated in a interview with William Guillory of The Athletic. “I think he’s worked extremely hard during the time away,” Gentry said. “I think, to some degree, you’ll see everybody a little rusty when we come back because we’ve been away for so long. But he’ll get himself right, and I don’t see any reason why he wouldn’t pick up right where he left off. “

Three Pelicans Players Tested Positive For COVID-19

June 30th, 2020 at 11:30am CST by Luke Adams

Three players on the Pelicans‘ roster tested positive for the coronavirus when mandatory testing began last Tuesday, head of basketball operations David Griffin told reporters today (Twitter link via Jim Eichenhofer).

Those three players are following the NBA’s protocol, self-isolating and being re-tested daily. After they complete their quarantine period, return two negative tests, and get medical clearance, they’ll be able to resume workouts and travel to Orlando.

The NBA announced last week that 16 of the 302 players who were tested for COVID-19 last Tuesday were diagnosed with the virus. Based on Griffin’s comments today, it sounds like three of those 16 positive tests belonged to members of the Pelicans, though he didn’t specify which players are affected.

It’s also not clear whether or not any of the three Pelicans who tested positive are showing symptoms. Teams have the ability to sign a substitute player to replace a player who tests positive for the coronavirus, but Griffin didn’t suggest that anyone is any jeopardy of missing the restart, so hopefully New Orleans’ three affected players are asymptomatic.

Southwest Notes: New Orleans, Pelicans’ Schedule, C. Lee, Covington

June 27th, 2020 at 6:32pm CST by Arthur Hill

New Orleans presented a “very strong bid” to be part of the NBA’s restart before Orlando was chosen to host the whole thing, according to Christopher Dodson of Forbes. Sources with the team and local government tell Dodson that New Orleans was hoping to be among several participants in a multi-city plan.

“As the NBA looked to re-open, they did their due diligence and research on best potential in-market planning and what could cities and arenas pull off safely,” said Pelicans Senior VP of Communications Greg Bensel. “So in many markets with city and state restrictions it was going to be impossible, hence the bubble concept.”

New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell said the effort was a “bid to help save our tourism and promote that New Orleans was back and ready for business” in a tweet that was taken down about an hour after it was posted, adds Christian Clark of NOLA.com.

There’s more from the Southwest Division:

The Pelicans deserve the soft schedule they received for the eight games in Orlando, argues Rod Walker of NOLA.com. New Orleans will play just two games against teams with winning records, but Walker points out that the Pelicans had the easiest remaining schedule before the hiatus and would have faced just three winning teams — the Jazz, Clippers and Sixers — over their final 18 games.
Despite suffering a calf injury that will likely end his season, Courtney Lee plans to accompany the Mavericks to Walt Disney World, tweets Marc Stein of The New York Times. Lee provides a veteran presence in the locker room and could be valuable to the team even if he doesn’t play. Because Willie Cauley-Stein opted not to play in Orlando, Dallas won’t need to create an opening to add Trey Burke, so Lee may remain on the roster (Twitter link).
The Rockets will use their second training camp to fully incorporate Robert Covington into their style of play, writes Kelly Iko of The Athletic. Covington was acquired shortly before the trade deadline in early February and played just 14 games for Houston before the hiatus.