Changes Coming To New Orleans?

By on

        The New Orleans Pelicans haven't had the success they've been hoping for when they drafted Zion Williamson. Matter of fact, he is the only lottery pick from the 2019 draft to not play in a playoff game. Williamson has been very unlucky and riddled with injuries since entering the league. The Pelicans have made the postseason twice since 2019 but have failed to make it out the first-round. Just recently, they got swept by the Oklahoma City Thunder and now some changes are expected to be made. 



        Brandon Ingram is entering the final year of his current deal. There weren't reports of any serious extension talks between the two parties and it seems like they will not happen, instead a different discussion will be had. It was reported by NBA insider Michael Scotto that Ingram is most likely to be traded this summer. Matter of fact, after game two against the Thunder there were reports that he and Pelicans head coach Willie Green had an exchange in the locker room. Ingram will be making $36 million next season and will definitely draw interests from multiple teams. 



        Also regarding the Pelicans, Jonas Valanciunas will be a free agent this summer and likely sign with another team. He was traded to New Orleans in the summer of 2021 after playing three seasons with the Memphis Grizzlies. Valanciunas averaged a double-double in two of his three seasons with the Pelicans, he will be one of the top free agent centers this summer. There have been no reports of Zion Williamson being on the move but with two of his best teammates gone for next season, it is a real possibility he could seek a trade. 
Location: Miami, FL, USA

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Are the Sacramento Kings Contenders?

By on
Image
Last season the Sacramento Kings were the most surprising team in the entire league. Before last season began the Kings have been known to be one of the worst franchises in the NBA, having missed the playoffs for 16 straight seasons. Last summer the Kings made moves that would later show a huge turning point for the franchise.  Starting with the head coach. Last season the Kings fired Head Coach Luke Walton after 2 seasons (the Kings had a record of 92-134 with Walton as their Head Coach). They then hired Golden State Warriors assistant coach Mike Brown. The Kings did not stop there as they had to make some improvements to the roster. First, the NBA Draft, with the number 4 overall pick the Kings took Forward Keegan Murray from Iowa State. Later, in free agency, they signed Guard Malik Monk to a 2-year, $19.4 Million dollar deal. Next, the Kings traded for Guard/3-pt specialist Kevin Huerter. It is amazing how the Kings were able to gain such a high-quality player while not having to g
Read more

From Division 2 to the NBA

By on
Image
          The Miami Heat have found great success when it comes to developing undrafted players and this season they had themselves another successful project with Forward Haywood Highsmith. After graduating high school in 2014 Highsmith took his basketball talents to Wheeling University, a Division 2 program. Highsmith would go on to play 4 seasons at Wheeling University and would enter the 2018 NBA draft. Haywood Highsmith would go undrafted but that did not stop him from pursuing the big leagues.            Highsmith would have a couple opportunities at making the NBA with the Philadelphia 76ers however the Sixers didn't seem to have a reason to keep him so he got waived a few times. However he did not give up on his NBA dream and would continue to work on his game in the G-League with the Delaware Blue Coats [Philadelphia 76ers G-League affiliated team]. Haywood Highsmith also spent a season overseas in Germany. During the 2021-22 NBA season a lot of teams found themselves shor
Read more

Celtics Guard Inks New Deal

By on
Image
          Payton Pritchard has been quite the story for the Boston Celtics so far in his young NBA career. He was the 26th overall pick  back in the 2020 NBA draft. In his first three years in the league Pritchard has shown some offensive flashes especially with his shooting ability. However this past season Pritchard was in and out of the rotation, playing in just 48 games, which resulted in him requesting a trade however Boston did not necessarily entertain the idea. Pritchard clearly wants a consistent role in the Celtics' rotation and he may get that opportunity given all the moves the Celtics made this offseason and just recently was announced he has a signed a 4-year, $30 million contract extension with the Boston Celtics.           Pritchard did not see much playing time this past season given the elite guards ahead of him such as Marcus Smart, Derrick White and Malcolm Brogdon. Averaging just 13 minutes a game in the 48 games he appeared in during the regular season. Howeve
Read more