Trey Jemison

Pelicans Sign Malcolm Hill, Four Others

9:11am: The Pelicans announced the signings of Hill, Jones, Jemison and Robbins, along with Nolley.

New Orleans also confirmed the signing of Kaiser Gates to a two-way contract, which became official earlier in the week. The Pelicans’ offseason roster now stands at 21.


8:18am: The Pelicans have officially signed Malcolm Hill, Tevian Jones, Trey Jemison and Liam Robbins, according to RealGM’s transaction log. We previously wrote that New Orleans had agreed to sign Jones, Jemison and Robbins, but the Hill signing hadn’t been covered.

Hill, 27, has 24 games of NBA experience across stints with the Hawks and Bulls holding averages of 3.2 points and 1.6 rebounds. Most recently, Hill spent time with Chicago on a two-way contract, but was waived in February.

A product of Illinois, Hill has received more extensive playing time in the G League. In 32 regular season and Showcase Cup appearances last season with the Windy City Bulls (Chicago’s affiliate) and Birmingham Squadron (New Orleans’ affiliate), Hill averaged 15.4 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.6 steals.

It was reported in August that Jemison would be receiving an Exhibit 10 contract, and it’s likely safe to assume that’s the type of deal Hill, Jones and Robbins received from the Pelicans as well. If that’s indeed the case, all four players would be eligible for a bonus of up to $75K if they are waived by the Pelicans before the season begins and spend at least 60 days with Birmingham.

The signings of all four players brings New Orleans to 20 players under contract, one short of the offseason maximum. New Orleans has 14 players on standard contracts and two players signed to two-way deals. However, New Orleans is a bit over the tax and isn’t likely looking to keep a 15th standard player on the opening night roster in case they can duck under the tax. That means filling out the final open two-way spot is likely their primary goal, and one of these players could fill that spot.

It’s important to note that Landers Nolley was also reported to be joining New Orleans, but that deal has yet to be made official. It’s possible Nolley will fill the 21st and final spot on the team’s offseason roster.

Trey Jemison Agrees To Exhibit 10 Contract With Pelicans

Former UAB center Trey Jemison has agreed to an Exhibit 10 contract with the Pelicans, according to Jon Chepkevich of DraftExpress.com (Twitter link).

Jemison, a 6’11” center, played in Las Vegas Summer League with the Suns, averaging 8.0 points and 6.8 rebounds in 23.1 minutes across five games.

There was some speculation that Jemison would end up with Phoenix on a two-way deal. Jemison agreeing to an Exhibit 10 with the Pelicans suggests Phoenix wasn’t ready to hand out such an offer at this time. However, that doesn’t rule out the possibility of him ending up with the Suns at some point in the future.

Jemison joins a group of three other players who reportedly agreed to Exhibit 10 deals with the Pelicans: Landers Nolley II, Liam Robbins and Tevian Jones. None of these deals have been made official yet, so it’s possible one or more of them fall through. The Pelicans have a pair of open two-way contract spots, with one occupied by Dereon Seabron. For what it’s worth, the Suns have just one open two-way contract spot, with two spots being occupied by Udoka Azubuike and Saben Lee.

Even if he doesn’t make the Pelicans’ roster, Jemison could earn some money via the maximum Exhibit 10 bonus. If he’s waived by the Pelicans and then spends at least 60 days with the Birmingham Squadron, their G League affiliate, he’ll earn a bonus worth up to $75K.

After spending his first two collegiate seasons with Clemson, Jemison transferred to UAB, where he became a full-time starter. Jemison spent three seasons in UAB and was invited to the annual Portsmouth Invitational Tournament, an event for draft-hopeful college seniors. Jemison impressed there, leading to his summer league stint with the Suns.

Pacific Notes: Jemison, Metu, Paul

The Suns have filled two of their three two-way slots with guard Saben Lee and, reportedly, center Udoka Azubuike. According to Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic (Twitter link), Trey Jemison, who was on Phoenix’s Summer League team, is on the team’s radar for the other two-way slot.

The 7’0” Jemison, 23, played his last three college seasons at UAB and went undrafted. He averaged 8.0 points and 6.8 rebounds in 23.1 minutes per game during five Summer League contests.

We have more from the Pacific Division:

  • Signed to a minimum salary contract at the start of free agency, Chimezie Metu will have to force his way into the Suns’ rotation. The best way for Metu to do that would be as a small-ball center. Gerard Bourguet of GoPhnx.com believes Metu must show he can defend well enough for those lineups to work, and grab defensive rebounds to finish off those stops.
  • ESPN analyst Jay Bilas doesn’t see Chris Paul having any trouble fitting in with the Warriors, even if he comes off the bench for the first time in his career. “You have an opportunity to get a Hall of Fame player in Chris Paul, even though when you look at his body of work, maybe his teams and his personal style has been a little different than the style will be in Golden State,” Bilas told NBC Sports Bay Area’s Monte Poole. “But it’s a player who is hungry to win. It’s not going to be about him. It’s going to be about the team and doing what it takes for the team to win. I think it’s a great move. And I think he’ll blend in wonderfully.”
  • In case you missed it, we relayed a number of items on the Lakers earlier on Tuesday. Get the details here.

Draft Notes: Wembanyama, Lively, Mocks, Lewis, Warriors, Wizards

Las Vegas is a glitzier setting for Victor Wembanyama‘s first game with the Spurs, but the NBA won’t be upset if it happens in Sacramento instead, writes Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. San Antonio is one of six teams involved in the California Classic Summer League, which will take place during the first week of July — shortly before the Las Vegas showcase that includes all 30 teams.

“All summer leagues are NBA Summer Leagues,” commissioner Adam Silver said. “I’m very supportive of the Sacramento summer league. I remember when (Kings owner Vivek Ranadive) first came to the league and said this was something he wanted to do. I said, ‘As long as you have enough other teams who support it and players who want to play in it, it’s a good thing.’”

Reynolds points out that the Hornets will also be playing in Sacramento, so the top two picks in this year’s draft could be on display.

There’s more draft news to pass along:

  • Dereck Lively II may be the second-best shot blocker in the draft outside of Wembanyama, per Christian Clark of NOLA. The Duke center has reportedly been rising up draft boards and could be under consideration for the Pelicans at No. 14. Clark notes that Lively’s skills are still raw and he’s coming off a disappointing season with the Blue Devils, but he points out that New Orleans has a history of gambling on players with size and athleticism.
  • Lively is mentioned among the risers in the latest mock draft from Krysten Peek of Yahoo Sports. Joining him are Wembanyama’s teammate, Bilal Coulibaly, and UCLA’s Amari Bailey.
  • Ausar Thompson might be a better fit than his brother for the Rockets with the No. 4 pick, according to Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo of ESPN (Insider link). In their latest mock draft, the authors consider team fit as well as talent in projecting the first round. Among the surprises with fit factored in are Gradey Dick going No. 6 to the Magic and Amen Thompson slipping to the Wizards at No. 8.
  • Pepperdine’s Maxwell Lewis will hold a workout with the Pelicans this week after already having sessions with the Mavericks and Thunder, who are also in the lottery, tweets Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report. In addition, Lewis has worked out for the Hawks at No. 15, the Lakers at No. 17 and the Rockets at No. 20.
  • The Warriors hosted Kansas State’s Keyontae Johnson and Kansas’ Jalen Wilson for a workout on Monday, tweets Adam Zagoria.
  • The Wizards are holding a workout on Tuesday with Arkansas’ Ricky Council, Memphis’ Kendric Davis, Marist’s Patrick Gardner, Overtime Elite’s Jazian Gortman, Alabama-Birmingham’s Trey Jemison and Providence’s Noah Locke, the team announced in an email.

Draft Notes: Pacers, Hawks, Kalkbrenner, Harrison, Bates

Ricky Council IV (Arkansas), Nikola Djurisic (Serbia), Tevian Jones (Southern Utah), Darius McGhee (Liberty), Jordan Miller (Miami) and Keisei Tominaga (Nebraska) will work out for the Pacers on Tuesday, Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files tweets. Council, ranked No. 56 on ESPN’s Best Available list, and Djurisic (No. 59) are the highest-rated players visiting Indianapolis.

We have more draft-related news:

  • Kentucky forward Oscar Tshiebwe (No. 75) headlines the group of six prospects that the Hawks will evaluate on Tuesday, Lauren Williams of the Atlanta Journal Constitution tweets. Overtime Elite’s Jazian Gortman, North Carolina’s Leaky Black, UAB’s Trey Jemison, TCU’s Emanuel Miller and Texas’ Sir’Jabari Rice will join him.
  • Creighton’s Ryan Kalkbrenner is withdrawing from the draft and returning to school, CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein tweets. Kalkbrenner was considered a second-round prospect, ranking No. 62 on ESPN’s list.
  • Grand Canyon’s Rayshon Harrison is also returning to school, Rothstein adds in another tweet.
  • Eastern Michigan’s Emoni Bates interviewed well at the combine, which boosted his stock and made a lot of teams take a closer look at him, according to Sarah Todd of the Deseret News. Bates is considered a second-round prospect (No. 57).