New Orleans Pelicans Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Southwest Notes: Wembanyama, Jackson, Mavs, McCollum

February 24th, 2024 at 9:50am CST by Tristan Tucker

Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama became the youngest player to record an elusive 5×5 on Friday, recording at least five points, five rebounds, five assists, five steals and five blocks in the same game. Wembanyama joined Jamaal Tinsley as the only rookies in league history to accomplish the feat and he became just the second player, behind Michael Jordan, to record back-to-back games of five steals and five blocks.

What Wembanyama is doing as a rookie is unheard of, as emphasized by his stat line against the Lakers: 27 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists, five blocks and five steals. In his last four games, the rookie is averaging 24.8 points, 11.5 rebounds, 5.8 blocks, 5.5 assists and 3.3 steals.

Still, Wembanyama’s postgame comments suggest he’s more concerned about trying to win games than individual stats. When asked about joining Jordan in the history books, Wembanyama said “I wonder if he did it in wins,” according to ESPN’s Andrew Lopez.

Lakers superstar LeBron James had high praise for the 20-year-old rookie phenom after the game, calling Wembanyama one of the best rookies he’s ever seen.

“He doesn’t have a ceiling,” James said. “He can do whatever he wants to do with his career. It seems like he enjoys the game. It seems like he puts in the work. Just from the outside looking in, I’m not with him on a day-to-day basis, but I said a long time ago how special he was, and it’s literally that simple.”

We have more from the Southwest Division:

Grizzlies rookie GG Jackson II has been one of the bright spots of an unusually tough season in Memphis and it looks like his offensive role with the team is going to continue to grow. According to Damichael Cole of The Commercial Appeal, coach Taylor Jenkins said the team will look to transition Jackson from a secondary creator to a primary one and will put the ball in his hands more, though he’ll likely continue to come off the bench. “I feel like they put a lot of trust in me and they see the confidence in my game,” Jackson said.
The Mavericks are on a seven-game win streak despite having dealt with a plethora of injuries all season, writes Tim Cato of The Athletic. To illustrate just how unhealthy the Mavs have been, Cato points out that Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic have played fewer total games together (45) since Irving joined the team midway through last season than Bucks stars Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard have. Now, after trading for P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford at the deadline and getting players healthier, head coach Jason Kidd will have rotation questions to sort through. “We’re deep,” Kidd said. “This is the first time the Mavs have been deep in a long time.” Outside of Doncic, Irving and their new trade acquisitions, Dereck Lively, Josh Green and Derrick Jones Jr. are among those who have impressed this year.
Pelicans guard CJ McCollum suffered a left ankle injury on Friday night against Miami and did not return after initially being deemed questionable, according to team PR (Twitter link). McCollum is averaging 18.8 points and 4.6 assists per game this season for New Orleans.

Hoping To Avoid Play-In This Spring

February 22nd, 2024 at 5:42pm CST by Rory Maher

After competing in the play-in tournament the past two seasons, once advancing to the playoffs and once being immediately eliminated, the Pelicans hope to avoid the tournament altogether by making the playoffs outright in 2023/24, per Christian Clark of NOLA.com. “It’s definitely one of our goals,” head coach Willie Green said. “To take another step. That step for us is to not be in the play-in. We can control our own destiny with piling up as many wins as we can.” After winning seven of eight leading into the break, New Orleans is currently 33-22, the No. 5 seed in the West. However, the Pelicans only lead the No. 8 seed Kings by one-and-a-half games.

Pelicans Sign Jalen Crutcher To 10-Day Deal

February 22nd, 2024 at 4:15pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pelicans are signing guard Jalen Crutcher to a 10-day contract, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets. The signing is official, according to the NBA transactions log.

New Orleans has an open spot on the roster for Crutcher. The Pelicans also promoted Jeremiah Robinson-Earl from his two-way deal during the All-Star break after their roster count dropped to 13.

Crutcher, 24, has averaged 17.7 points, 5.6 assists, and 3.4 rebounds in 36 starts for the Pelicans’ Birmingham Squadron NBA G League team. Crutcher spent most of the past two seasons with the Hornets’ G League team, the Greensboro Swarm. He signed with New Orleans in October during training camp but was waived before opening night.

Crutcher went undrafted in 2021 out of Dayton and has yet to make his NBA debut. He’ll provide temporary depth at the guard spot.

A week ago, New Orleans announced that Dyson Daniels would be out at least a month after undergoing left knee surgery.

Pelicans Sign Malcolm Hill To Two-Way Contract

February 22nd, 2024 at 4:12pm CST by Luke Adams

FEBRUARY 22: Hill’s two-way contract with the Pelicans is now official, the team announced in a press release.

FEBRUARY 21: Following a pair of brief stints with the team earlier in 2023/24, third-year swingman Malcolm Hill will be returning to the Pelicans on a two-way contract, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

Hill, 28, was in training camp with the Pelicans in the fall and signed a 10-day contract with the club on January 27, but has yet to see any action at the NBA level this regular season after appearing in 24 total games for the Hawks and Bulls from 2021-23.

The former Illinois standout has spent the majority of this season with the Birmingham Squadron, New Orleans’ G League affiliate. In 33 Showcase Cup and regular season games for the Squadron, Hill has averaged 22.0 points, 6.4 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 1.5 steals in 34.9 minutes per contest, posting an impressive shooting line of .477/.409/.884.

After promoting Jeremiah Robinson-Earl from a two-way contract to the standard roster over the weekend, the Pelicans have a two-way slot available, so no corresponding move will be required to make room for Hill. After the deal is finalized, the Pelicans will still have one opening on their standard 15-man roster.

Depending on when exactly Hill signs his new contract, he’ll be eligible to be active for up to either 15 or 16 of the Pelicans’ 27 games the rest of the way.

Karlo Matkovic Joins Pelicans’ G League Team

February 21st, 2024 at 3:07pm CST by Luke Adams

Croatian big man Karlo Matkovic has joined the Birmingham Squadron, the Pelicans‘ G League team, according to the league’s official transaction log (hat tip to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype).

Matkovic was selected 52nd overall in the 2022 NBA draft by the Pelicans, who still control his NBA rights. He had remained overseas since that draft, spending this season with KK Cedevita Olimpija in Slovenia.

Matkovic, who will turn 23 in March, enjoyed a strong year with Olimpija, averaging 14.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks in 28.8 minutes per game across 15 EuroCup appearances. He also averaged 15.6 PPG, 7.2 RPG, and 2.8 BPG in 17 ABA contests (28.4 MPG).

Word broke last month that Matkovic would be leaving his team in Slovenia to come stateside, but it wasn’t reported at that time whether he would be signing a standard NBA contract, a two-way deal, or a G League contract.

It turned out to be the latter, which means the Pelicans will retain the forward/center’s exclusive NBA rights going forward and will get a closer look at him in Birmingham without having him occupy one of the team’s 15 standard roster spots or three two-way slots. Depending how his rest-of-season audition goes, Matkovic could earn one of those 18 spots in New Orleans next season.

Southwest Notes: Pelicans, McCollum, Doncic, Mavericks

February 19th, 2024 at 9:31pm CST by Tristan Tucker

The Pelicans are 33-22 and have the same record as the fifth-seeded Suns. Still, they’ve got room to improve, as evidenced by several close games against some of the league’s bottom teams, according to The Athletic’s William Guillory. New Orleans won three games in a row against the Trail Blazers, Grizzlies and Wizards, but they were all decided by single digits. In the wins over Memphis and Washington, the Pelicans squandered 20-point leads before coming back late to win.

“When we get a lead, especially if we want to make a deep run in the playoffs, we’ve got to be able to maintain leads,” Zion Williamson said. “If we were able to maintain leads, we would probably be 14, 15, 16 games over .500. I think we’re in an OK spot. But when we come back from break, we’ve got to be able to fine-tune some of those small nuances in the game.”

The team’s offense and defense has been a mixed bag, according to Guillory, and neither Williamson nor Brandon Ingram has been consistent with his dominance. While the Pelicans are deep with young players and solid rotation pieces, they’re still attempting to build consistency, which will be crucial as the playoff approach.

“I think we’re learning to grow with each other,” coach Willie Green said of the team. “This group is still pretty young in terms of [our starters] being on the floor together for this long in the season. Along the way, we’re starting to figure it out, but I think that plays a role in some of the inconsistencies we’ll see from time to time. We just have to stay committed to working the kinks out.”

We have more from the Southwest Division:

Pelicans guard CJ McCollum is pleased with how Williamson and Ingram have progressed since he joined the team in 2022, according to Sportskeeda’s Mark Medina. “They have a better understanding of their game and their bodies with what they need to do each day to be ready to play, when to rest and when to workout,” McCollum said as part of an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda. “Their IQ is continuing to improve as well as their decision making. They’re just playing their total games with scoring, rebounding and passing. Defensively, I think they have gotten better and have been more aggressive. The more they rebound on defense, the better we are on offense.“
Mavericks star Luka Doncic, like many other All-Stars, had no intention of being offensively assertive during the East’s 211-186 victory over the Western Conference in the 2024 All-Star Game, Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News writes. Doncic had seven points, seven rebounds and seven assists in the game and was content to let others shine. “People come in here and play 40 minutes, they don’t want to get injured,” Doncic said. “Everybody just gets out of the way. I don’t know how to fix that. I just follow the lead.“
The Mavericks are in a much better position at this All-Star break compared to last season, even if there’s been less buzz surrounding the team, Townsend writes. The Mavs are 32-23 and are tied for the longest winning streak in the league at six games whereas last year they were 31-29 and were five games into the Kyrie Irving-Doncic pairing. After acquiring P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford at the deadline, Dallas looks more capable of approaching 50 wins this season, according to Townsend.
In case you missed it, Grizzlies forward Lamar Stevens and Spurs forwards Marcus Morris and Cedi Osman are among players we’re monitoring as possible buyout options.

Myers: Pelicans, Like Knicks, Lack Greatness

February 18th, 2024 at 6:52pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Former Warriors GM and current ESPN TV analyst Bob Myers compares the Pelicans to the Knicks, Christian Clark of the New Orleans Times Picayune relays. “I think the Knicks are the Pelicans of the East,” Myers said on ESPN. “Very deep. A lot of good players. Lacking greatness.” Myers adds that those types of teams are less effective in the postseason. “When you get to the playoffs, it’s not about the ninth or 10th guy,” he said. “When the Warriors were winning championships, you know what our bench scoring was? Twenty-seventh in the league; 28th in the league; 29th. You know who scored? The guy making $40 million. The guy making $30 million.”

Pelicans Sign Jeremiah Robinson-Earl To Two-Year Contract

February 17th, 2024 at 11:37am CST by Rory Maher

FEBRUARY 17: The Pelicans have officially converted Robinson-Earl to a standard contract, according to a press release from the team.

FEBRUARY 16: The Pelicans plan to promote forward/center Jeremiah Robinson-Earl to a two-year standard contract, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (via Twitter). Robinson-Earl is currently on a two-way deal with New Orleans.

A league source tells Christian Clark of NOLA.com that the second season of Robinson-Earl’s new contract (2024/25) will be a team option (Twitter link).

After playing two college seasons at Villanova, Robinson-Earl was selected with the 32nd pick of the 2021 draft. He spent his first two NBA seasons with the Thunder, but he was traded to Houston in October and subsequently released by the Rockets before the 2023/24 season began. The 23-year-old caught on with the Pelicans the following week, with the deal made official on his birthday (November 3).

A 6’9″ big man, Robinson-Earl hasn’t played much for New Orleans this season, logging just 10.0 MPG across 21 appearances. He has averaged 3.7 PPG and 2.3 RPG over that span, with an impressive .517/.364/.909 shooting line, though the sample size is very small.

The Pelicans have two openings on their standard roster, so they won’t need to waive anyone to convert Robinson-Earl. In addition to a standard roster spot, they’ll also have an open two-way slot once the move is official.

As our tracker shows, Robinson-Earl will be the 12th player to be promoted from a two-way deal to a standard contract in 2023/24. Trail Blazers big man Duop Reath is the 11th, having agreed to a three-year deal with Portland this afternoon.

Southwest Notes: Jackson, Williams, Jones, Brooks, Sochan

February 17th, 2024 at 9:45am CST by Tristan Tucker

The Grizzlies upset the Bucks on Thursday, with young forwards GG Jackson and Vince Williams playing big parts in the victory. Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal writes that breakout years from Jackson and Williams are silver linings in an injury-riddled season from Memphis.

Jackson scored a career high-tying 27 points in the win over Milwaukee.

“I try to be as coachable as possible,” Jackson said. “My high school coach called me a sponge back in the day. Not back in the day, it was like two years ago. I try to pick up on things as fast as I can, but not too fast to make sure I get every little detail.”

Meanwhile, Williams finished that game with 18 points, 12 rebounds, seven assists and three steals. Both players look like they’ll fit perfectly on a fully healthy version of the Grizzlies. Williams gives Memphis another capable perimeter defender while Jackson’s ability to bring instant offense to the bench will be valuable.

Jackson in particular drew praise from Milwaukee’s stars Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard after the game, according to The Memphis Commercial Appeal’s Jonah Dylan. “I thought he had a great game,” Lillard said. “He came out, he was letting it fly, no hesitation.”

Antetokounmpo said he liked Jackson “a lot.”

We have more from the Southwest Division:

Pelicans wing Herbert Jones is shining from beyond the arc in his third season in the league, NOLA.com’s Christian Clark observes. Jones is shooting a career-high 40.7% from deep and is connecting on 52.6% of his threes since the New Year. “Herb has been shooting the ball well lately,” Pelicans coach Willie Green said. “He is getting more and more confident in his shot.“
Rockets wing Dillon Brooks‘ worst shooting season came last year with the Grizzlies, but he’s experiencing his best efficiency ever in his first year with Houston, Jonathan Feigen of Houston Chronicle writes. Overall, he’s taking smarter shots and helping Houston get into an offensive flow. “In general this year, I think he’s done a good job of really expanding his game and not getting pigeonholed into (the) defensive side only,” Rockets coach Ime Udoka said. “… It’s a lot to play both sides of the ball, not just be a scorer or a defensive guy only. I think he welcomes that role this year. It was good carryover from the Canadian national team and the things he did with them.“
Jeremy Sochan has had somewhat of a roller-coaster season with the Spurs this year. Sochan took over point guard duties to begin the season, an experiment that was taxing on him and wasn’t producing San Antonio’s best offensive product, according to Tom Orsborn of San Antonio Express-News. However, Sochan seemed to have no regrets about going through with the position change, even if temporarily, and expressed the need for outsiders to have patience while this core grows together. “I always had the mentality that the only way is up,” Sochan said. “Everything I do is for a reason, to learn and grow. So, yeah, I feel good. It’s just growing and learning even more. The sky is the limit.“

Buyout Market Rumors: Fournier, Wright, Bertans, Young, Gallinari

February 16th, 2024 at 8:50am CST by Luke Adams

After spending the better part of the last two seasons on the bench in New York, Evan Fournier was traded from the Knicks to the Pistons as a salary-matching piece in the deadline-day deal that sent Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks out of Detroit. Given that Fournier isn’t owed any guaranteed money beyond this season and the Pistons have the NBA’s worst record, he has been viewed as a buyout candidate.

However, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, the Pistons have indicated that they plan to hang onto Fournier, so barring an unexpected development, he won’t reach the buyout market in the coming days or weeks.

Fournier, who appeared in just three games for the Knicks prior to last week’s trade, has logged over 25 minutes per night in his first two games as a Piston, averaging 11.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 1.5 steals.

Here are a few more notes and rumors on the buyout market from Scotto:

After averaging about 15 minutes per contest in his first 29 appearances in Washington this season, Delon Wright hasn’t played more than seven minutes in any of the four games since the trade deadline. A number of playoff contenders, including the Suns, are keeping on eye on the situation to see if the Wizards guard – who is on an expiring contact – will be bought out, Scotto writes.
Veteran sharpshooter Davis Bertans has played double-digit minutes off the bench in each of his first three games with the Hornets and appears unlikely to be let go in the immediate future, per Scotto. Bertans’ $16MM salary for 2024/25 is partially guaranteed for $5.25MM next season, which is one reason why Charlotte may wait until the summer to make any move involving him.
Thaddeus Young is expected to complete his deal with the Suns after the All-Star break next week, says Scotto, adding that the veteran forward also drew interest from the Sixers, Pelicans, and Celtics before agreeing to sign in Phoenix.
Although the Suns had interest in Danilo Gallinari, they were out of the mix for the forward after agreeing to sign Young, Scotto notes. Since the Cavaliers couldn’t guarantee Gallinari the kind of role he sought and the Bulls aren’t a legitimate title contender, Gallinari’s decision ultimately came down to the Clippers and Bucks. He chose Milwaukee after debating the two options for a few days, according to Scotto.