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Pelicans Notes: Davis, Evans, Frazier

November 15th, 2016 at 10:18am CST by Luke Adams

The Pelicans put themselves in a serious hole to start the 2016/17 season, losing their first eight games. Since then, the team has looked a little better, picking up wins against the Bucks and Celtics in the last three games. With Jrue Holiday expected to return soon, the tide may be shifting a little in New Orleans, but the Pelicans still have a significant uphill battle to contend for a playoff spot. Let’s check in on the latest Pelicans news and notes…

According to Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders, there’s a pretty decent chance that the Pelicans will make “big changes in the immediate future,” but those moves won’t involve Anthony Davis — New Orleans has never considered dealing the face of the franchise, and it’s hard to imagine a scenario in which the club would consider it, Kyler writes.
Injured guard Tyreke Evans is set to participate in “light practice” for the Pelicans today, reports Scott Kushner of The Advocate (all Twitter links). According to Kushner, it’s too early to pencil in an exact return date for Evans, but there’s a chance he’ll be back in the team’s lineup by Thanksgiving.
Tim Frazier, who started his career in the D-League, signed a guaranteed two-year, $4MM+ contract with the Pelicans this summer, but continues to fight to prove he belongs in the NBA, as Justin Verrier of ESPN.com outlines.

Pelicans Notes: Stephenson, Holiday, Evans, Hill

September 23rd, 2016 at 9:15pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Lance Stephenson, who recently signed with the Pelicans, sat down with Justin Verrier of ESPN.com to discuss a number of topics, included how the swingman believes he has changed over the past few years. “When you come into the NBA as a youngster, you got babied all your life,” Stephenson said. “Everybody from when you were younger saying, ‘You’re gonna be in the NBA. You’re this and that.’ But once you get in the NBA, there are a lot of guys similar to you, so you have to learn how to do different things to keep developing. So you’ve got to put in the hard work and learn from other guys, see how they work out. Really, I feel like all the stuff I’ve been through has made me a better player. I feel like God puts you in situations to help you succeed in the long run.”

When asked why he chose to join New Orleans, Stephenson told Verrier, “I liked this team, and I see a couple young guys that I could potentially help and show all the other stuff that I learned from other places, from guys like Chris Paul, Paul George, Paul Pierce. Just teach them, and help them believe and show them the right way to work out there and what it takes to make it to the conference finals, and getting that work in every day.”

Here’s more from New Orleans:

Pelicans GM Dell Demps told Verrier (Twitter link) that there is no timetable for Jrue Holiday to return to the team, but he’ll be welcomed back with “open arms” when he does. The point guard has taken a leave of absence to help care for his ailing wife and their newborn child.
Demps confirmed to Verrier (via Twitter) that Tyreke Evans won’t be available to play until at least December. The exact timetable should become clearer within the next two-to-four weeks, Verrier adds. Evans is still recovering from the two surgeries on his right knee he underwent last season.
Evans isn’t the only ailing Pelican, with Quincy Pondexter also not likely to be available until December at the earliest, though, the forward could potentially be sidelined until January, journalist Guerry Smith tweets. Pondexter underwent cartilage replacement surgery on his left knee back in January.
Solomon Hill, who signed a four-year, $48MM deal with the Pelicans in July, understands more will be asked of him this season, writes Scott Kushner of The New Orleans Advocate. “I wouldn’t say the actual role is so much different,” Hill said. “But the level where I need to be for this team is definitely different.”
Chris Copeland nearly joined the Pelicans three seasons ago, but he landed in Indiana instead, the forward told Jim Eichenhofer of NBA.com. The 32-year-old is excited that he is now in New Orleans after signing with the team this week, the scribe relays. “I’ve thought I was coming here a few times before this,” Copeland said. “For whatever reason, it didn’t pan out. I’m just glad it actually came full circle and I get the opportunity to try again this year. It’s a great city. I tell people time and time again, it has some of the best food in the world, and the atmosphere here is special.”

Kyler’s Latest: Teague, Pelicans, Gay, Millsap

September 1st, 2016 at 11:54am CST by Luke Adams

Jeff Teague is eligible for a contract extension, and the Pacers hope he can become the team’s long-term answer at point guard, but they may not be able to extend him before he reaches free agency next July. As Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders details, Indiana currently has just over $6MM in cap room, and likely wants to retain that space for a possible new deal for Paul George, who becomes extension-eligible later this month. To entice either player to ink a new deal sooner rather than later, the Pacers will almost certainly need to provide a raise in addition to an extension, and George figures to be a priority over Teague.

That doesn’t mean that a new, in-season deal for Teague is out of the question. However, unless George decides not to sign an extension this year, a trade would likely be necessary to clear the cap room necessary for a Teague extension. And as Kyler writes, the Pacers don’t seem overly concerned about making a deal at the moment.

Here’s more from Kyler on a few players entering potential contract years:

According to Kyler, the Pelicans are seeking backcourt depth, having eyed Ty Lawson and Lance Stephenson recently, and the backcourt may not just be a short-term concern. With Jrue Holiday and Tyreke Evans entering contract years, it seems unlikely that they’ll both still be on New Orleans’ roster a year from now, particularly since both players have had health issues.
Rudy Gay‘s 2017/18 player option has been a complication in trade talks, since some potential suitors don’t want to take on that option, and others would want assurances he’ll opt in, per Kyler. Still, the Kings appear ready to move on, with Kyler suggesting it’s probably “a matter of when rather than if” Gay gets traded.
Source close to the Hawks tell Kyler that the relationship between Paul Millsap and the team is “actually pretty good,” despite the fact that Atlanta seriously explored trading him this offseason. The two sides have had talks about Millsap’s role and his future with the franchise, but Kyler wonders if the Hawks would become more inclined to trade him if they play poorly in the first half. After losing Al Horford this summer, Atlanta may want to avoid repeating that situation in 2017.
Kyler also has notes on Zach Randolph and Greg Monroe, so be sure to check out his column for the full details.

Tyreke Evans To Miss Start Of The Season

July 16th, 2016 at 9:57am CST by Arthur Hill

The Pelicans won’t have Tyreke Evans available when the 2016/17 season begins, tweets Scott Kushner of The Advocate. The 6’6″ swingman had two surgeries on his right knee last season and has been out of action since mid-February.

“He won’t be ready for the start of the season,” New Orleans coach Alvin Gentry said during an appearance on The Lowe Post podcast with ESPN’s Zach Lowe. “He’s in a rehab situation. I think for us we just gotta move forward with our season. And then, if he comes back and he’s able to help us, that just adds icing to the cake.”

Evans played in just 25 games this season, averaging 15.2 points, 5.2 rebounds and 6.6 assists per night. He was part of a wave of injuries that knocked the Pelicans out of playoff contention early in the season. The seven-year veteran is entering the final year of his contract and will be a free agent next summer.

Western Notes: Walton, Pelicans, Gallinari, Paul

March 29th, 2016 at 2:49pm CST by Chuck Myron

Warriors assistant Luke Walton is reportedly poised to become a top candidate for the Knicks coaching vacancy, and the Lakers, Suns, Rockets and Kings are expected to target him, too, but former colleague Alvin Gentry thinks Walton still doesn’t gets the credit he deserves, notes Marc Berman of the New York Post. Gentry, now head coach of the Pelicans, was on Golden State’s staff last year with Walton, who inherited Gentry’s role as lead assistant and guided the Warriors to a 39-4 record while head coach Steve Kerr recovered from back surgeries. “Luke did an unbelievable job of managing egos, of rotations he played,” Gentry said. “Everything that happened there, he pushed the right buttons, so I was disappointed when people said anybody can coach that team. That’s not true at all. He has an unbelievable understanding of the game. I think [Knicks president] Phil [Jackson] knows that. [Luke] stayed in the league for a long time because of the basketball IQ he has. He gets along great with players. He’s going to be a terrific coach in the league – I really do think that.”

See more from the Western Conference:

Jrue Holiday and Alonzo Gee are out for the rest of the season, which ends two weeks from Wednesday, the Pelicans announced. That means seven New Orleans players are finished for 2015/16. Holiday, who fractured his orbital bone, and Gee, who ruptured a right quadriceps muscle, join Anthony Davis, Quincy Pondexter, Eric Gordon, Bryce Dejean-Jones and Tyreke Evans on the shelf for the year. Ryan Anderson and Norris Cole are also dealing with less severe injuries, the team said.
Danilo Gallinari doesn’t expect to play again this season for the Nuggets, as he said in an interview with Sky Sport of Italy (video link; translation via Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia). Coach Michael Malone told reporters early this month that the team was thinking about shutting him down even if he recovered before season’s end from the two torn ligaments he suffered in his right ankle February 26th. Denver has since signed Axel Toupane for the balance of the season and beyond.
Chris Paul won’t play for Team USA in the Olympics this year, telling Sports Illustrated’s Lee Jenkins that he’s withdrawing his name from consideration for the squad. “I feel my body telling me that I could use the time,” the 30-year-old said. Paul can opt out of his contract with the Clippers after next season.

Tyreke Evans Out For Season

February 11th, 2016 at 8:16pm CST by Chuck Myron

THURSDAY, 8:16pm: Evans underwent surgery today and will miss the remainder of the 2015/16 season, the Pelicans announced via press release.

11:38am: Coach Alvin Gentry cautioned that it’s not certain Evans is out for the year, pointing to further tests he’ll undergo this week, notes Brett Dawson of The New Orleans Advocate (Twitter links). He’s meeting with specialists to gather a second opinion, Gentry said, according to John Reid of The Times Picayune (on Twitter).

WEDNESDAY, 7:58am: Tyreke Evans will likely miss the rest of the season, reports Shams Charania of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports. He plans to have surgery this week on his right knee, the same knee on which he had surgery that knocked him out for the first month of the season, Charania notes, adding that he’ll finalize those plans after meeting with specialists this week. It’s also the same knee in which he’s been suffering from tendinitis that’s kept him out for the past seven games. New Orleans had reportedly been gauging the trade market for him, and the 26-year-old swingman is apparently among the players the Cavs have been eyeing. The Pelicans had been showing a greater willingness to move either Evans, Eric Gordon or both than they had with Ryan Anderson, writes Ken Berger of CBSSports.com.

Gordon is due back soon from the broken right ring finger he suffered last month, but in the meantime, he’s one of three Pelicans with significant injuries at present, joining Evans and Quincy Pondexter, who’s also out for the season. New Orleans would need a fourth injury that’s expected to keep a player out for the next two weeks in order to qualify for a hardship provision of a 16th roster spot.

It’s too late in the season for the Pelicans to receive a disabled player exception for Evans that would allow them additional financial means to acquire someone to replace him. New Orleans is six and a half games behind the Rockets for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference, and with Evans injured, the team’s postseason hopes appear faint.

Evans, making nearly $10.734MM, is the third leading scorer for New Orleans at 15.2 points per game. His 6.6 assists are tops on the Pelicans and match his career high from last season. He’ll make about $10.204MM next year in the final season of his contract.

Cavs Eye Korver, Evans, Asik; Kings Reject Mozgov

February 9th, 2016 at 11:32am CST by Chuck Myron

The Cavaliers are interested in Kyle Korver and also have Tyreke Evans and Omer Asik on their radar, while recent talks with the Kings about Timofey Mozgov have met with rejection from Sacramento, Brian Windhorst of ESPN said in a radio appearance today on ESPN Cleveland’s “The Really Big Show,” according to a series of tweets from ESPN Cleveland. The Cavs have also been showcasing Anderson Varejao for a trade, Windhorst said, nonetheless adding that it doesn’t seem he’s drawing much interest. It’s unlikely that Cleveland lands Korver, Windhorst also said, though the relatively likelihood of Evans, Asik and Mozgov changing teams is unclear. The Cavs and Pelicans had talks earlier that involved Mozgov and Asik, but the Cavs were reluctant to deal, as Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports reported last month.

Atlanta has reportedly solicited offers for Jeff Teague and Dennis Schröder of late and isn’t entirely certain that Al Horford will re-sign in free agency this summer, and Windhorst speculates that the Hawks could be sellers. They’re in fifth place in the Eastern Conference at 30-24, having already lost more games than they did during the entire regular season last year. Korver is under contract through next season, at more than $5.746MM this year and more than $5.239MM for 2016/17. His normally elite 3-point shooting is down to 38.3% this season, but that’s still better than most, and the Cavs have reportedly sought to add long distance shooting and defense to the wing.

New Orleans has reportedly sized up the market for Tyreke Evans and had discussions about trading him, though it’s unknown whether those talks were internal or external. The former Rookie of the Year is out until at least the All-Star break with tendinitis in his right knee. He’s once more been seeing time at point guard, where he’s matching his career high with 6.6 assists per game, though it would seem more logical that Cleveland would have interest in him as a wing player. His salary of nearly $10.734MM is just barely outside the bounds of the $10,522,500 trade exception Cleveland has as a vestige of Brendan Haywood. That’s true even though Evans’ salary for next season, the last year on his contract, is only about $10.204MM.

Asik’s numbers are off significantly this year, having suffered a right calf strain in the preseason that continued to bother him well into the regular season. The five-year, nearly $53MM contract he signed this past offseason looks player-friendly so far, though his more than $9.213MM salary for this year would fit within Cleveland’s exception.

He’d ostensibly offset the lack of production the Cavs have seen from Mozgov, who has also been slow to recover from injury, having undergone offseason surgery on his right knee. I examined Mozgov’s trade candidacy shortly after Wojnarowski reported that the Cavs had begun to explore the trade market for him. Sacramento would be an odd fit for him, given the presence of big men DeMarcus Cousins, Kosta Koufos and Willie Cauley-Stein, though it’s unclear what the Kings would have relinquished in Cleveland’s proposals. Mozgov is making $4.95MM this season on an expiring contract.

Varejao saw 27 minutes of action against the Pelicans on Saturday, but his minutes have otherwise been spotty. The longtime confidant of LeBron James is making $9.638MM this season in the first year of a three-year extension.

Do you see a deal involving any of these names that the Cavs should make? Leave a comment to tell us.

Pelicans Size Up Market For Tyreke Evans

January 28th, 2016 at 9:47am CST by Chuck Myron

The Pelicans are listening to trade offers for Tyreke Evans and gauging his market value, sources tell Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops (Twitter link). Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports wrote earlier this month that the team had discussions about trading Evans, but it wasn’t clear if the talks were internal or involved other teams.

The former Rookie of the Year has been serving as the starting point guard for New Orleans with Jrue Holiday now in a sixth man role. Evans has dealt all season with the lingering effects of an October arthroscopic surgery on his right knee, as Scott Kushner of The New Orleans Advocate details. Still, an MRI this week was negative, with tendinitis the only issue, according to fellow Advocate scribe Brett Dawson (Twitter link).

New Orleans has also reportedly had talks with other teams involving Eric Gordon and Ryan Anderson, though Gordon is expected to be out for another three to five weeks with a broken right ring finger, and it appears the team prefers to hold on to Anderson. Those two are on expiring contracts, while Evans, who’s making nearly $10.735MM this season, has one more year left on his deal. Omer Asik‘s name has also reportedly come up in talks, and Scotto wrote in December that the team had made him available to potential trade partners.

It’s been a profound disappointment of a season for the Pelicans so far, as they stand at 16-28, but they’re just three and a half games out of the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. Evans is the team’s third leading scorer at 15.2 points per game and shooting 38.8% from 3-point range this season, by far the best percentage of his career.

What should the Pelicans ask in exchange for Evans? Leave a comment to share your thoughts.

Western Notes: Plumlee, Jones, Garnett

January 14th, 2016 at 10:20pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Pelicans‘ season has not gone as planned and the team has begun exploring its options in the trade market, Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports relays. In addition to power forward Ryan Anderson, whom New Orleans has reportedly been listening to offers about, the team has also discussed various trade scenarios involving swingmen Tyreke Evans and Eric Gordon, the Yahoo scribe notes. Gordon, who is earning approximately $15.5MM this season, is in the final year of his contract, but Evans’ deal still has one more season on the books valued at $10.2MM. Here’s more from out West:

Blazers big man Mason Plumlee is still trying to make his case that he has what it takes to be a special player, Jason Quick of CSNNW.com writes. “I’m at a point right now where I still very much feel like I’m trying to prove myself in this league,’’ said Plumlee. “I think there are a lot of guys who think they can hang around because they are big or athletic, but I really want to thrive, I really want to be somebody in the NBA. And I don’t think that’s proven yet.’’ Plumlee points to Warriors forward Draymond Green as an example of a player who wasn’t satisfied with merely making it into the NBA, which is the path he wishes to take, Quick adds. “You look at Draymond: a late draft pick, could have been satisfied with establishing himself in the league,’’ Plumlee continued. “But now, he’s doing special things, becoming a special player. So I ask myself: Do I want to just be a player in the NBA, or do I want to excel and be special?’’
Rockets combo forward Terrence Jones has turned a corner as a player and may be on his way to fulfilling some of the promise that made him the No. 18 overall pick in the 2012 NBA draft, Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com writes. “The talent is there with Terrence,” interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “We need to get to a point where it’s there every night and we can depend on Terrence because he’s a big part of what we do. He’s a big part of our big rotation up front — he, Clint [Capela] and Dwight [Howard] right now get all the minutes at the big spots for us. This is the type of performance that he had tonight and [Tuesday, when he scored 20 points] that he’s capable of. We just need him to string those performances together.”
Kevin Garnett is only averaging 14.9 minutes per night for the Wolves, but the veteran has been remarkably efficient during his limited time on the court and his leadership has proven to be a great resource to the team, Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune writes. “He’s still very valuable to what we’re trying to do,” interim coach Sam Mitchell said of Garnett. “Those 10 minutes that he plays, he sets the tone. It’s 10 minutes our young guys get a chance to see one of the greatest defenders ever play. They get a chance to play with him. They’re learning experience, whether KG is on the floor for 10 minutes or 17 minutes. It’s invaluable.”

Western Notes: Evans, Clippers, Mavericks

January 9th, 2016 at 8:03pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Tyreke Evans is still having difficulty adapting to the offensive system of first year coach Alvin Gentry, John Reid of The Times Picayune writes. Reid notes that Gentry’s system requires quick ball movements and at times, Evans is holding onto the ball too long instead of making quick passes. New Orleans is averaging 98.8 points per 48 minutes as a team, but with Evans in the game, the pace drops to 95.6 points per 48 minutes. Evans missed the first 17 games of the season while he was recovering from knee surgery, and the team understands it’s going to take time for him to pick up the system.

”He didn’t have the luxury of even being in training camp or playing in any preseason games,” Gentry said. ”It’s still fairly new to him. It’s not like he doesn’t want to do it. He played a style of basketball we got to try and convert to another style. That’s not easy to do on his part either. I know he wants to do it, I don’t have any doubt about that. We just got to keep working on it. I think we also have to do as coaches adjust and put him in situations also where he’s comfortable.”’

The Pelicans are 11-24 on the season, but they remain only four games back of the Jazz for the eighth seed in the Western Conference. Here are some notes from a few teams above them in the playoff race:

The Clippers could use a small forward upgrade and they should look to the trade market to find it, Lang Greene of Basketball Insiders argues. The team has won eight straight, but if Los Angeles is going to compete with the upper echelon of the Western Conference, it needs to add another play-maker on the wing. The scribe names Lance Stephenson, Jamal Crawford and Josh Smith as realistic trade assets.
The Mavericks could also use small forward help with Chandler Parsons struggling to find his mid-season form, Greene opines in the same piece. Aside from Parsons, Dallas doesn’t have a true small forward on the roster and Greene adds that it could realistically dangle Devin Harris or Raymond Felton in order to find some wing depth.
Coach Rick Carlisle believes that Parsons, who could become a free agent this offseason if he declines his player option, is making progress on the court, Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News writes. “I liked his aggression [in New Orleans],” Carlisle said of Parsons’ 21 point performance against the Pelicans on Wednesday. “It’s another step along the way. I said it’s probably going to be late December, early January before you can start keeping stats on him with any accuracy because of the comeback and rehab and conditioning. I feel now that it’s going to be the All-Star break before he really has his legs under him. There are going to be some ups and downs, but we’re seeing a lot more ups than downs.”