New Orleans Pelicans Rumors | Hoops Rumors

And-Ones: Cousins, Expansion, 2024 Cap Room, Netflix, More

November 14th, 2023 at 12:48pm CST by Luke Adams

Veteran center DeMarcus Cousins, who last played in Puerto Rico, is drawing “strong” interest from a team in the Chinese Basketball Association, sources tell Orazio Cauchi of BasketNews.com. While it’s unclear which team in China is pursuing Cousins, one of BasketNews’ sources believes that a deal will be reached.

As Cauchi explains, Cousins – who has earned four All-Star nods and been named an All-NBA player twice – was already in China for a series of promotional events. Negotiations with the mystery CBA team have reportedly gotten more serious since he arrived in the country.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

While Las Vegas and Seattle are the destinations most frequently cited for the next round of NBA expansion, commissioner Adam Silver said during an appearance on NBC Sports Boston’s Celtics telecast on Monday (Twitter video link via The Shift) that he wouldn’t rule out a pair of Canadian cities as eventual homes for NBA franchises. “I know there’s interest from Montreal, we’ve heard from them,” Silver said. “There’s still ongoing interest in Vancouver. … There will be more opportunity (in Canada) over time.”
Keith Smith of Spotrac recently took a closer look at each team’s projected spending power for the 2024 offseason, naming the Magic, Sixers, and Pistons as the clubs that are in the best position to create significant cap room.
Netflix has conveyed some interest in broadcasting the NBA’s in-season tournament in future seasons, sources tell John Ourand of Sports Business Journal. The 2023/24 in-season tournament games are airing on ESPN, TNT, and regional sports networks, but that could change in the NBA’s next media deal.
Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report ranked the best players and prospects on two-way contracts, with Pelicans sharpshooter Matt Ryan and Celtics big man Neemias Queta earning the top spots on his list.

Larry Nance Jr. Diagnosed With Rib Fracture

November 13th, 2023 at 10:06pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pelicans have lost five straight games and they got more bad news on Monday. Key reserve Larry Nance Jr. has a right rib fracture, according to a team press release.

He’ll be re-examined in 10-to-14 days to determine his healing progress.

Nance is averaging 3.8 points and 4.4 rebounds in 15.7 minutes per contest this season. Last season, Nance averaged 6.8 points and 5.4 rebounds in 21.7 minutes per night over 65 regular season games.

Nance has dealt with a variety of injuries throughout his career. In the last four seasons alone, he has missed time due to knee, wrist, hand, shoulder, Achilles, neck, groin and ankle ailments.

New Orleans has already been beset by injuries to key performers this season, including CJ McCollum, Herbert Jones, Trey Murphy and Jose Alvarado.

Veteran Cody Zeller could see increased playing time off the bench with Nance sidelined.

Zion Williamson Assesses The Pelicans' New Offense

November 13th, 2023 at 10:59am CST by Arthur Hill

After committing six turnovers on Sunday, Zion Williamson talked about the Pelicans‘ new offense, which he claims has forced him to take a “back seat” compared to last season, per Christian Clark of NOLA. Williamson’s 21.6 points and 8.6 made field goals per game through eight contests are the lowest figures of his career. “Last year, we had a team meeting,” he said. “We brought up some things I could do better. Especially with buying into the program. It’s tough right now. I’m taking a little back seat right now. And I’m trusting the process. I’m trying my best to buy in right now.”

Update On Murphy

November 9th, 2023 at 11:06pm CST by Rory Maher

Will Guillory of The Athletic (Twitter link) provides an injury update on Pelicans wing Trey Murphy, who is recovering from meniscus surgery on his left knee. According to Guillory, Murphy has been running prior to games, playing 1-on-1 against assistant coaches and is making good progress, but he’s still “at least a few weeks away” from returning to action.

And-Ones: Self, 2024 FAs, G League, Harrison, More

November 9th, 2023 at 3:44pm CST by Luke Adams

Longtime University of Kansas head coach Bill Self has signed an amended lifetime contract with the school’s basketball program, according to a press release. The deal is worth approximately $53MM over the next five years, a source tells Jeff Goodman of The Messenger (Twitter link).

Self, who has never coached in the NBA, was mentioned a few years ago as a possible successor for Gregg Popovich in San Antonio. However, he shot down those rumors on multiple occasions and said he had no intention of leaving the Jayhawks — this latest contract agreement confirms that’s still the case.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report looks ahead to 2024 NBA free agency, previewing the potential top stories and attempting to forecast landing spots for the best free agents in the class. Three Clippers stars – Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, and James Harden – headline Pincus’ list.
The NBA G League announced this week that it has entered into a streaming partnership with Tubi, an ad-supported video-on-demand service. “NBA G League TV” will be the result of the union and will air more than 75 live NBAGL games on Fridays and Saturdays each season, starting tomorrow with the opening night of this year’s Showcase Cup.
After initially reporting that veteran NBA guard Shaquille Harrison was on track to finalize a contract with Olimpia Milano, Fabrizio Lorenzi of La Repubblica now says that talks between the two sides have stalled, as Sportando relays.
Following up on the report that the NBA is considering expanding its draft from one day to two days, Zach Harper of The Athletic offers his other suggestions for draft-related changes, including moving it to after free agency.
Hawks forward Jalen Johnson, Pelicans wing Matt Ryan, and Suns center Drew Eubanks are among 10 players singled out by John Hollinger of The Athletic as names who are “emerging from obscurity” and making themselves worth watching in the early going this season.

Injury Notes: Davis, Hayes, Jones, Herro, C. Thomas

November 8th, 2023 at 9:21pm CST by Rory Maher

After previously expressing optimism that he wouldn’t miss additional time with the injury, Lakers big man Anthony Davis was ruled out of Wednesday’s game vs. Houston due to left hip spasms, as Dave McMenamin of ESPN writes.

The Lakers were also without reserve center Jaxson Hayes, who is dealing with a left ankle sprain, McMenamin adds.

Davis initially sustained the injury on Monday against Miami, exiting the game in the third quarter. Sources tell McMenamin the Lakers are hopeful Davis will be back in action for Friday’s matchup in Phoenix.

Here are a few more injury notes from around the NBA:

The Pelicans were extremely shorthanded on Wednesday, with multiple rotation players sidelined for various reasons. A third starter — wing Herbert Jones — was ruled out ahead of the matchup vs. Minnesota due to a right fibula contusion, tweets Will Guillory of The Athletic. With so many players injured, all three of the team’s two-way players (Matt Ryan, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl and Dereon Seabron) received first-quarter minutes, with Robinson-Earl getting a starting nod, Guillory adds (via Twitter). Robinson-Earl just signed his two-way deal with the Pelicans last week.
Heat guard Tyler Herro is off to a strong start in 2023/24, but unfortunately he sustained a right ankle sprain in the first quarter of Wednesday’s game vs. Memphis and was ruled out for the remainder of the contest, the team announced (via Twitter). Bally Sports Heat has the video (Twitter link), with Herro landing on Jaren Jackson Jr.‘s foot following a floater in the lane. Herro was unable to put weight on his leg after the injury and hopped to the locker room.
Another player off to a terrific start this season is Nets guard Cam Thomas. Unfortunately, he suffered a left ankle sprain on Wednesday vs. the Clippers and missed the remainder of the game, according to Brian Lewis of The New York Post (Twitter links), who adds that Thomas will undergo an MRI on Thursday. The 2021 first-round pick rolled his ankle after stepping on P.J. Tucker‘s foot (Twitter video link via Lucas Kaplan of NetsDaily).

Injury Notes: McCollum, Alvarado, Mann, Vassell

November 8th, 2023 at 1:48pm CST by Luke Adams

Pelicans guard CJ McCollum, who was diagnosed over the weekend with a small pneumothorax in his right lung was reexamined on Tuesday and medical imaging showed positive healing, the team announced today in a press release.

However, the Pelicans still aren’t prepared to provide any sort of projected recovery timeline for McCollum, simply stating that he’ll be reevaluated at “a later date” and that further updates will be announced once they’re available.

Like McCollum, Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado remains sidelined for the foreseeable future, though there’s a more concrete timetable in place for Alvarado, who is recovering from a right ankle sprain. According to the club, he’s making “good progress” and has resumed on-court work. The expectation is that Alvarado will return to full practices within the next week or two.

Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:

Neither Pelicans forward Zion Williamson nor Warriors forward/center Draymond Green are injured, but both players have been ruled out for their games on Wednesday for personal reasons, per Christian Clark of NOLA.com and Anthony Slater of The Athletic (Twitter link). It’s worth noting that Golden State’s game vs. Denver is a nationally televised contest and Green is one of the players affected by the NBA’s player participation policy, but absences for personal reasons are permitted under that policy.
After incorporating P.J. Tucker and James Harden within the last week, the Clippers are expected to get more reinforcements on Wednesday in Brooklyn. Terance Mann (ankle) is on track to make his season debut and will be on a minutes restriction, per Shams Charania of The Athletic.
Spurs swingman Devin Vassell (left adductor strain) is listed as doubtful for Wednesday’s contest vs. the Knicks, tweets Andrew Lopez of ESPN. While Vassell likely won’t return tonight, he seems to be making good progress, according to Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News (Twitter link), who says the 23-year-old participated in today’s shootaround, as well as a post-practice four-on-four session.

Western Notes: Kings, Tucker, McCollum, JRE, Thunder

November 7th, 2023 at 12:59pm CST by Luke Adams

With De’Aaron Fox on the shelf due to a right ankle sprain, the Kings are struggling to establish their identity and display the sort of physicality and stalwart defense that head coach Mike Brown wants to see, per Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee. After suffering back-to-back blowouts to the Rockets in Houston on Saturday and Monday, Brown suggested changes might be coming to the rotation.

“I’ve got to evaluate some things,” Brown said. “In this business, you always have to have a sense of urgency, but you have to believe in what you do whenever you make any type of change or any time you do this instead of that. For me, I’m going to go back and I’m going to watch the film, and if I feel the same way after the film, then I’ve got to try to make sure I keep trying to put five guys out there who are going to do what we ask, which is to play together and play the right way while playing fast and bringing a sense of physicality.

“I always have a 24-hour rule, especially after something like this,” Brown continued. “So, I’m going to sleep on it and I’m going to watch this film, and if you earn a chance to play, I’m going to play you. Nobody’s position on this team is sacred.”

The Kings, winners of 48 games last season, are off to a 2-4 start in 2023/24 and rank 22nd in the NBA in defensive rating (114.0).

Let’s round up a few more notes from around the Western Conference…

New Clippers forward P.J. Tucker admitted on Monday that, despite the trade rumors that swirled around teammate James Harden all offseason, he hadn’t anticipated being part of a Harden deal. “I wasn’t expecting to get traded, so I didn’t know,” Tucker told Stefan Bondy of The New York Post. “It kind of came out of nowhere.”
Pelicans head coach Willie Green told reporters on Monday that the team doesn’t have any new details on CJ McCollum‘s collapsed right lung, but expressed optimism that the ailment isn’t too serious, writes Christian Clark of NOLA.com. “We don’t think it’s too bad,” Green said. “But we have to run more tests and see where we are after that.” As Clark observes, McCollum dealt with a similar health issue during his time in Portland and it cost him 18 games.
Jeremiah Robinson-Earl‘s two-way contract with the Pelicans is just a rest-of-season deal, Hoops Rumors has learned. That means Robinson-Earl will be eligible for restricted free agency at the end of the 2023/24 season, assuming he plays out his new contract.
Some rival scouts and executives think the Thunder are capable of being a top-four seed in the West this season, but head of basketball operations Sam Presti is preaching patience and appears in no rush to accelerate his team’s contention timeline, as Tim MacMahon details in an interesting feature for ESPN.com.

CJ McCollum Diagnosed With Collapsed Lung

November 5th, 2023 at 4:07pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Medical imaging has revealed that star guard CJ McCollum recently suffered a small collapsed right lung, the Pelicans announced in a press release. The team will assess him across the ensuing two days to evaluate his recovery and will issue an update after that 48-hour period.

The 6’3″ veteran had been enjoying a prolific start for the 4-2 Pelicans. Across his five games in 2023/24 so far, he had been averaging 21.7 PPG on .440/.380/.742 shooting, along with 5.7 APG, 4.8 RPG, 1.5 SPG and 0.8 BPG.

Injury issues sank New Orleans’ season last year. After initially emerging as one of the top clubs in the West, the team nosedived through the standings following major injuries to star forwards Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram.

Though both those players are currently healthy, McCollum joins a growing list of rotational guards and wings who are currently sidelined.

Point guard Jose Alvarado is still recovering from a right ankle sprain that he suffered right before the start of the season. Small forward Naji Marshall is set to be reassessed in two weeks as he works his way back from a knee issue. Wing Trey Murphy III will also be out for the foreseeable future as he continues to recuperate from surgery on a torn left meniscus.

NBA Teams With Open Roster Spots

November 4th, 2023 at 3:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Each of the NBA’s 30 teams is permitted to carry 15 players on standard contracts and three on two-way deals, which works out to a maximum of 540 players across 30 rosters. The Grizzlies have been granted an extra roster spot after moving Ja Morant to the suspended list, so let’s call it 541.

Of those 541 potential roster spots, 527 are currently occupied, leaving just 14 open roster spots around the NBA. Four of those open roster spots belong to two teams, while 10 other clubs have one opening apiece.

[RELATED: 2023/24 NBA Roster Counts]

Here’s the full breakdown:

Two open standard roster spots

Golden State Warriors
Los Angeles Clippers

As we’ve previously discussed, teams can only carry two open spots on their standard rosters for up to 14 days at a time, so the Warriors and Clippers will each have to add a 14th man soon.

That deadline is coming up very soon for the Warriors, who have had two open roster spots since the start of the season on October 24. The Clippers, who just dipped to 13 players following their two trades on Thursday, will have a little more time to decide on their next roster move.

I wouldn’t expect either team to be in any rush to add a 15th man, since both clubs are well above the luxury tax line.

One open standard roster spot

Boston Celtics
Chicago Bulls
Cleveland Cavaliers
Detroit Pistons
Los Angeles Lakers
Miami Heat
Minnesota Timberwolves
New Orleans Pelicans
Portland Trail Blazers

Many of these teams are carrying an open roster spot for luxury tax reasons. The Celtics, Lakers, Heat, and Pelicans are all over the tax line, while the Bulls, Cavaliers, and Timberwolves don’t have much breathing room below it. Most of those teams will add 15th men eventually, but they’ll be in no rush to do so yet.

The Pistons are well below the tax, however, while the Trail Blazers have more than enough flexibility to sign a 15th man without getting too close to tax territory. Both teams should be on the lookout for players who would make good candidates to fill those openings.

One open two-way roster spot

Phoenix Suns

It’s no coincidence that Phoenix, the only NBA team without a G League affiliate of its own, is also the only club carrying just a pair of two-way players instead of three.

With no NBAGL team where they can send players for developmental purposes, the Suns will be less motivated to carry a full complement of two-way players, since it’s unlikely they’ll need three of them to regularly contribute at the NBA level unless their standard roster is beset by injuries.