New Orleans Pelicans Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Southwest Notes: Hardaway, Brunson, Zion, Grizzlies

May 1st, 2022 at 3:29pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Mavericks swingman Tim Hardaway Jr. continues to recover from the surgically repaired fractured left foot that caused him to miss nearly half of the 2021/22 regular season and all of Dallas’ first-round 4-2 defeat of the Jazz. It certainly doesn’t sound like Hardaway will return in time for these playoffs — he has yet to be cleared to run, per Callie Caplan of the Dallas Morning News (Twitter link).

“He’s shooting the ball, but from my eye, he hasn’t done any running or anything yet,” Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd said in discussing Hardaway’s progress. “So that’s more of a medical question, but right now he’s out.”

Dallas has officially announced (Twitter link) that Hardaway will miss the first game of the Mavericks’ second-round matchup against the Suns. Across 42 healthy contests for the Dallas, the 6’5″ shooting guard out of Michigan averaged 14.2 PPG, 3.7 RPG and 2.2 APG this season, on .394/.336/.757 shooting splits.

There’s more out of the Southwest:

A left calf strain to Mavericks All-Star Luka Doncic allowed his starting backcourt mate Jalen Brunson to step up his own offensive game, per Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News. Brunson has earned rave reviews from his former Villanova teammate Mikal Bridges, whose Suns will face off against Brunson’s Mavericks in their upcoming second-round matchup starting Monday. “He’s been hooping all year,” Bridges enthused. “When Luka went out and he had to step up, he was ready for it. “I’m watching games and I could . . . just tell. I know what shots he’s going to make. I just know. I know how talented he is and how hard he works and how much of a dog he is.” While with Villanova, Bridges and Brunson won two NCAA titles.
Pelicans team president David Griffin acknowledged that forthcoming contract extension discussions with 2021 All-Star forward Zion Williamson may not be easy, writes Christian Clark of NOLA.com. The Pelicans will have the ability to offer Williamson a maximum extension worth up to 25% of the salary cap, with 8% yearly raises. “Obviously, that conversation is going to be one that will be a challenge,” Griffin said. “When it’s time to have that, we’ll have it. And right now what we’re focused on is him being healthy, and (being in) kind of elite condition to play basketball and we’ll start there.” Williamson recently indicated he hoped to remain with the Pelicans and get a deal done. Injuries have limited Williamson to just 85 healthy games across his three seasons of NBA action. The No. 1 overall pick out of Duke in 2019 has been quite productive when available, with career averages of 25.7 PPG, 7.0 RPG, 3.2 APG and 0.9 APG.
The Grizzlies, currently in the midst of their first playoff game against the Warriors in a 2-3 second-round matchup, might have a “death lineup” of their own, writes Chris Herrington of the Daily Memphian. All-Star point guard Ja Morant, breakout second-year shooting guard Desmond Bane, swingman Dillon Brooks, forward Brandon Clarke, and big man Jaren Jackson Jr. could give the Warriors’ ultra-small, shooting-heavy lineups plenty of trouble in their first-round matchup.

Pelicans Notes: Nance, Griffin, McCollum, Zion

April 30th, 2022 at 10:55pm CST by Arthur Hill

Larry Nance Jr. hasn’t enjoyed much stability in his seven-year NBA career, but he hopes to find it with the Pelicans, writes Christian Clark of NOLA.com. Nance was a perfect fit in New Orleans after being acquired from the Trail Blazers in February, and with one year left on his contract, he’s hoping for an extension.

“Willie (Green) is my eighth head coach,” Nance said. “I have had seven different general managers. I am so tired of it. This organization has been incredible since I got here. The people are great. The fan base is incredible. I would love to make this a permanent stay. But again, that’s not up to me.”

The first order of business for Nance after the trade was arthroscopic surgery to fix his right knee, which kept him sidelined until late March. Clark notes that Nance was much more explosive when he resumed playing.

“The little piece of meniscus in my knee was bothering me for the past few years,” Nance said. “I didn’t even realize it. Getting that cleaned up and cleaned out and getting to play that last stretch of games was fully healthy was great. I still feel great. My body is in a great place right now.”

There’s more from New Orleans:

The Pelicans have 14 players under contract for next season, but there are some important decisions to make this offseason, Clark adds. CJ McCollum, who came to New Orleans in the same deal as Nance, will also be eligible for an extension, and the team has to figure out whether to make a maximum extension offer to Zion Williamson. Executive vice president of basketball operations David Griffin said those situations will be addressed and called it “a real blessing” that all three players want to remain with the Pelicans.
McCollum attracted headlines at the All-Star break when he said that he hadn’t been able to speak with Williamson, who was working out away from the team. On Friday, Williamson offered an explanation, tweets Andrew Lopez of ESPN. “Honestly, I was focused on rehabbing around that time,” he said. “I texted CJ shortly after to apologize about that. Like I said, I was mentally not in a good space. Mr. McCollum, he was cool about it.”
Williamson’s comments at Friday’s media session that he still wants a future in New Orleans were exactly what the organization needed to hear, contends Rod Walker of NOLA.com, as Williamson did his best to silence persistent speculation that he would rather be in a bigger market. “I can’t control rumors and how people feel about certain things,” Williamson said. “I said this in my interview with (Pelicans TV announcer) Antonio (Daniels). Anybody who knows me, knows I want to be here. If they feel otherwise, I can’t help that. But if you know me, you know I want to be here.”

Larry Nance Jr. Would Like Long-Term Stay In New Orleans

April 29th, 2022 at 3:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Having played for four teams and eight head coaches since entering the NBA in 2015, Pelicans forward Larry Nance Jr. would welcome some stability and said on Friday that he’d like to make New Orleans his permanent home, tweets William Guillory of The Athletic. Nance has just one year left on his current contract, but will be extension-eligible this offseason.

Zion Williamson Enthusiastic About Potential Extension With Pelicans

April 29th, 2022 at 1:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Asked during his end-of-season media session on Friday about the possibility of signing a rookie scale extension with the Pelicans when he becomes eligible this offseason, forward Zion Williamson expressed enthusiasm, tweets William Guillory of The Athletic.

“Of course,” Williamson said. “I couldn’t sign it fast enough.”

There are a couple caveats worth noting here. For one, it’s not uncommon for a player speaking to reporters to express platitudes about wanting to sign a contract extension with a team and for that deal not to ultimately materialize.

It also seems likely that Williamson is talking about a maximum-salary contract offer, or something close to the max, rather than suggesting he’d accept any offer the Pelicans put in front of him.

No player eligible for a rookie scale extension has ever turned down a maximum-salary offer, but given that Zion missed the entire 2021/22 season due to a foot injury and has appeared in just 85 games since entering the league in 2019, putting a max deal on the table won’t be an automatic decision for the Pelicans.

Still, Williamson’s comment is noteworthy since there has been ongoing speculation about whether or not he’s committed to New Orleans for the long term. This is a promising sign that he’s not looking for an exit ramp.

As we noted earlier today, the Pelicans’ impressive second-half performance and tough playoff battle with the NBA-best Suns will strengthen their case when they enter negotiations with Williamson this summer — adding the former Duke star to the mix would make New Orleans one of the most intriguing teams in the West.

According to Andrew Lopez of ESPN (Twitter link), Williamson said today that he felt like he could’ve returned from his foot injury and played at the end of the season, but the coaching staff and front office ultimately decided that holding him out of action was the right call for the sake of his career longevity.

Pelicans Notes: Offseason, Jones, Murphy, Alvarado, Zion

April 29th, 2022 at 11:11am CST by Luke Adams

When the Pelicans got off to a 1-12 start this season, it looked like the team was headed for another lottery finish and some difficult offseason questions. Instead, New Orleans managed to turn things around, earned a playoff berth via the play-in tournament, and gave the NBA-best Suns all they could handle in the first round of the playoffs.

“To get to the playoffs, we continued to believe in ourselves. Continued to get better, believing in this organization,” Brandon Ingram said after Thursday’s Game 6 loss, according to Will Guillory of The Athletic. “New coach. New players. Figuring it out so fast. You don’t think about it in the moment because we just lost, but we definitely came a long way from the beginning of the season.”

As Guillory writes, the first-round loss to Phoenix was a tough one, given how competitive the Pelicans made the series (they were outscored by a total margin of 668-659 across six games). But after laying a strong foundation of young talent, the franchise looks poised to remain competitive and continue improving in the coming years.

There are still some pressing offseason questions facing the Pelicans, with both Zion Williamson and Jaxson Hayes eligible for rookie scale extensions, but all of the team’s young players are under contract for 2022/23, Guillory notes. And while there has been plenty of speculation about Williamson’s long-term commitment to New Orleans, the team couldn’t have done much more this spring to make him want to be part of the future.

Here’s more on the Pelicans:

The Pelicans wouldn’t have gotten as far as they did this season without the contributions they received from a trio of unheralded rookies, according to Andrew Lopez of ESPN, who spotlights Herbert Jones, Trey Murphy, and Jose Alvarado. Jones emerged as a legitimate All-Defensive candidate, Murphy knocked down 38.2% of his three-point attempts, and Alvarado provided energy and hustle plays off the bench. All three players are under contract for multiple years going forward.
In his Pelicans offseason preview, ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Insider link) examines the big decision the team must make on a potential Williamson extension and points out that veterans like CJ McCollum and Larry Nance Jr. will be extension-eligible this summer as well.
Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype also looks ahead to the Williamson contract negotiations and the other key roster decisions facing the Pelicans this summer. As Gozlan writes, New Orleans doesn’t have much breathing room below the projected luxury tax line, which will affect the club’s ability to make full use of its mid-level exception.

VanVleet To Miss Game 6; Booker Returns For Suns

April 28th, 2022 at 5:05pm CST by Dana Gauruder

5:05pm: Booker will play tonight, according to coach Monty Williams, Andrew Lopez of ESPN tweets.

4:40pm: The Raptors have ruled out guard Fred VanVleet for Game 6 against the Sixers tonight, according to coach Nick Nurse, Tim Bontemps of ESPN tweets.

VanVleet had been listed as doubtful. The Raptors will be looking to stave off elimination once again and even up the series at 3-3 with a win in Toronto.

VanVleet suffered a left hip flexor strain in Game 4 on Saturday. Toronto emerged with a 103-88 win in Game 5 without him as Nurse used an unconventional rotation without a true point guard.

Meanwhile, the Suns will look to close out their series with the Pelicans with their leading scorer back in action. Devin Booker is expected to play in Game 6 tonight, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets.

Booker will test out his strained hamstring in pregame warmups, and assuming all goes well, he’ll be back on the floor after missing the past three games.

Phoenix has gone 2-1 without Booker, who is officially listed as questionable.

Injury Notes: VanVleet, Mitchell, Ingram, Z. Williams

April 27th, 2022 at 2:42pm CST by Luke Adams

Raptors guard Fred VanVleet has officially been listed as doubtful for Game 6 of the team’s first-round series vs. Philadelphia, tweets Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. The Raptors will be looking to even up the series at 3-3 with a win in Toronto on Thursday.

VanVleet suffered a left hip flexor strain in Game 4 on Saturday and his comments prior to Game 5 indicated there’s no guarantee he’ll be able to return in the first round.

Although VanVleet was an All-Star this season and will be missed if he’s officially ruled out, the Raptors have actually looked better against the Sixers with their starting point guard on the sidelines. Toronto has a +11.2 net rating in 105 minutes without VanVleet, compared to a -16.0 net rating in the 140 minutes he has spent on the court.

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

After getting good news when an MRI on his hamstring came back clean on Tuesday, Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell said today that he’ll be “good to go” for Game 6 on Thursday, according to Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News (Twitter links). Mitchell told reporters that he was concerned when he thought his soreness was hamstring-related, but isn’t worried now that he has just been diagnosed with quad bruising.
Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram told reporters after Tuesday’s game that he banged up the ring and pinkie fingers on his right hand during the fourth quarter of the team’s Game 5 loss, but he doesn’t expect the injury to be an issue going forward. “(The fingers) got jammed. They’re pretty sore right now,” Ingram said, per Andrew Lopez of ESPN. “But nothing that treatment can’t fix and get better by next game.”
Grizzlies rookie Ziaire Williams exited Tuesday’s win over Minnesota early due to right knee soreness, as Evan Barnes of The Memphis Commercial Appeal writes. Williams’ status for Game 6 on Friday is unknown.

CJ McCollum Wants To Retire With Pelicans

April 26th, 2022 at 9:50pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Just months into his Pelicans tenure, veteran guard CJ McCollum has indicated a desire to remain in New Orleans long-term. During an interview with Marc J. Spears of Andscape, Pelicans said he hoped to retire with his new club.

“I’m not going nowhere,” McCollum said. “Leave for what? I want to retire here. I’m 30 years old and I have a son who is 13 weeks old. I’m married. When you have something good, you hold on to it. This is something fun for both sides. We’re going to grow. I’m still learning the city. I’m going to find a house.”

The Pelicans are McCollum’s second NBA team. He was traded this season following a fruitful eight-plus years logged with Damian Lillard and the Trail Blazers. He is averaging 24.0 PPG, 7.3 RPG and 5.8 APG through the Pelicans’ first four games in their 2-2 first-round matchup against the Suns. Game 5 is in progress tonight.

McCollum’s passion for the Pelicans must be encouraging for the club’s front office. The 6’3″ veteran still has two seasons left on the three-year, $100MM extension he signed while with Portland.

Here are more highlights from the conversation:

McCollum raved about the Pelicans’ personnel on and off the hardwood. “You respect [team president David Griffin] as a person in the front office,” McCollum said. “Then there is BI’s [Brandon Ingram] game, JV [Jonas Valančiūnas], Zion [Williamson], Herb [Jones], Trey [Murphy], Jaxson [Hayes] … a lot of young talent they’re considered and they’re going to get even better. I felt like I was what they were missing, and they were what I was missing.”
McCollum expressed similar excitement about what he’s observed from first-year head coach Willie Green. “He knows what he is doing,” McCollum said. “He’s been around the game for so long. Secondly, he was around the right coaches. He and [Suns head coach] Monty [Williams] are like best friends. He’s arguably the best coach in the league with X’s and O’s, demeanor and getting the most out of his players’ development.”
McCollum, who could be signed to a three-year extension to his current contract as of August 9, was asked about the possibility of a deal getting done during the offseason. “We haven’t talked yet,” McCollum noted. “I haven’t talked to upper management. But I told my wife before I left [Portland] that ‘Wherever I go, I want to finish my career. New Orleans is on the list of places I would like to finish my career.’ I told my agent that. I’m not about bouncing around. I don’t go through free agency. I’ve been in the league nine years. Have you ever seen me be a free agent? When I’m committed to something, I’m committed to it. New Orleans, in my mind, I’m finishing my career here. That is how I devote myself to a city, things and people.” If he doesn’t sign an extension, McCollum would remain under contract through the 2023/24 NBA season.
When asked by Spears about the Pelicans’ plan for defeating the Suns and pulling off a historic upset, the best team in the NBA by record with a 64-18 regular season, McCollum was understandably tight-lipped. “I guess we will find out,” McCollum said. “Even if I had the answer, I’m not giving you it until the series is over.”

Southwest Notes: Pelicans, Nance, Wall, Spurs

April 24th, 2022 at 3:31pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Pelicans are aware that evening their current first-round playoff matchup against the top-seeded Suns will require them to keep their cool, writes Christian Clark of NOLA.com.

In the middle of Game 3’s second quarter, Pelicans big man Jaxson Hayes was ejected from the contest, an eventual Suns win, after aggressively pushing Phoenix forward Jae Crowder. New Orleans would go on to lose at home by a narrow margin (114-111). The Suns now have a 2-1 series edge.

Pelicans head coach Willie Green acknowledged that Hayes let his emotions get the best of him in that instance, but that the team overall has been effective at managing its emotions in a playoff environment.

“I thought we’ve done a really good job of that this series,” Green said of the Pelicans’ approach to their emotions. “We had a moment — the Jaxson-Jae Crowder thing. But other than that, it was a close game coming down the stretch, the last five minutes. They pulled away a bit. But we’re doing a lot of good. We just have to be better down the stretch.”

New Orleans will face off against the Suns in a big Game 4 today.

There’s more out of the Southwest Division:

Pelicans forward Larry Nance Jr. is confident in the team’s core even without star forward Zion Williamson, writes Logan Murdock of The Ringer. “We’re the real deal,” Nance tells Murdock. “This team is here and this team is for real… And we have a top-10 asset that hasn’t even touched the court yet.” Murdock notes that three promising New Orleans rookies have emerged as key additions to the club’s playoff rotation: Herbert Jones, Jose Alvarado, and Trey Murphy III. Star veterans CJ McCollum and Brandon Ingram have proven they belong in these playoffs thus far.
Rockets veteran point guard John Wall is expected to opt in to the final season on his max deal, worth $47.3MM in 2022/23. Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report suggests that Wall’s agents and Houston brass will discuss the possibility of a buyout arrangement if the Rockets are unable to find a trade partner for Wall before the 2022 draft in June. Should Wall be bought out, the Heat and Clippers may have interest in adding the former All-Star, says Fischer.
With the team’s youth movement fully underway, the Spurs are ready for an offseason typical of San Antonio head coach Gregg Popovich: one full of Popovich’s exacting standards, per Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News. Third-year forward Keldon Johnson knows what to expect from Popovich, who wants to see Johnson improve his defense. “He’s hard on me because he wants me to be great,” Johnson said. “If it was anything different, I wouldn’t want that.” McDonald writes that San Antonio All-Star guard Dejounte Murray will need Johnson, forward Devin Vassell, and rookie shooting guard Joshua Primo to develop for the Spurs to return to the playoffs.

Devin Booker Could Be Out 2-3 Weeks With Hamstring Strain

April 21st, 2022 at 12:40pm CST by Rory Maher

Suns star Devin Booker has been diagnosed with a Grade 1 right hamstring strain and could miss two to three weeks, according to Brian Windhorst of ESPN.

Reports on Wednesday indicated that Booker was unlikely to play in Games 3 and 4 of Phoenix’s series against New Orleans — now it sounds like the injury could sideline him beyond that.

After scoring 31 points in the first half of the Suns’ Game 2 loss on Tuesday, Booker left the game in the third quarter due to the injury and didn’t return. Booker underwent an MRI on Wednesday and the Suns initially deemed it to be a mild hamstring strain, but were still evaluating the results.

As Windhorst explains, a typical recovery period for a player with a Grade 1 hamstring strain is between 14-21 days. However, sources tell ESPN that Pelicans head coach Willie Green is warning his players to expect Booker back sooner than that.

Booker missed seven games earlier this season due to a hamstring strain that affected his left leg. He also played through a hamstring injury during last year’s NBA Finals and has dealt with a few other hamstring issues over the years, though none have been too significant — this year’s seven-game absence was his longest stretch on the sidelines.

The top-seeded Suns, who went 8-6 this season without Booker, will still be favored over the Pelicans even without their leading scorer, but they don’t have a huge margin for error as they head to New Orleans with the series tied at one game apiece.

In 68 regular season games this season (34.5 MPG), Booker averaged 26.8 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 4.8 APG and 1.1 SPG on .466/.383/.868 shooting. He was outstanding during the team’s run to the Finals last season and carried that strong play into this postseason, averaging 28 PPG, 3.0 RPG and 4.5 APG on .526/.579/.833 shooting in the first two games of the series (32.5 MPG). Game 3 tips off at 8:30pm CT on Friday night.