-
Change Change Change
It’s been quite the interesting offseason for the New Orleans Pelicans, at least from where I sit. The team’s lone significant move was to sign Jrue Holiday to a large deal. Combining that with other contracts on the books, even extended into the pre-offseason, the rest of the team’s moves have been Out: Tim Frazier, […]
-
Ian Clark might be the New Orleans Pelicans’ best offseason signing
It’s a situation the Pelicans aren’t accustomed to, in which free agents are willing to take less money or a lesser role in order to be a part of the organization. Never a premier locale in the NBA, it has taken the arrival of DeMarcus Cousins to push the team toward this kind of legitimacy. […]
-
The Pelicans charted their course, and Kyrie Irving isn’t worth changing direction.
The Kyrie Irving trade demand has set the NBA ablaze, and even the newly-constructed New Orleans Pelicans have not been able to keep away from the hot stove. This morning, ESPN’s Zach Lowe published a piece which meandered through the various options for Cleveland and Irving in a potential trade. The Pelicans weren’t mentioned until […]
-
Rondo will force change, but just might improve the Pelicans
If the arrival of DeMarcus Cousins in New Orleans signaled one set of changes for the Pelicans’ organization, then the courtship and acquisition of Rajon Rondo represents a full evolution. Gone is the versatile, defense-first team that stayed above water for 50 games last season; in is the opportunity for a more Gentry-fied offense. Cousins […]
-
Setting an Appropriate Bar for Rondo
I’m pretty good at talking myself into a hole. If we get Rondo I will riot. Silently and without consequence, but I will riot — Mike Pellissier (@MikePellissier) June 24, 2017 So here we are, now, with Rondo joining the Pelicans, presumably as a starter next to Jrue. This fits the “Jrue is best served […]
-
Pelicans, Rajon Rondo Agree To Contract
The New Orleans Pelicans have reportedly agreed to a deal with 11-year veteran point guard Rajon Rondo. History, Play, Fit Rajon Pierre Rondo, from Louisville, played at Kentucky for 2 seasons before being drafted by the Suns and traded to the Celtics. He signed his first contract with the Celtics and was part of their […]
-
Manipulating the Pelicans’ Glass Salary Ceiling
Required reading before continuing: The Pelicans’ Glass Ceiling, by Jason Calmes Thanks to the diligence of Bourbon Street Shots’ own Dr. Jason Calmes, we now have a firm understanding of the ramifications of Jrue Holiday’s new contract with the New Orleans Pelicans. Though Jrue’s contract “only” contains $126 million in guaranteed money, the additional $24 […]
-
The Pelicans’ Glass Salary Ceiling
The New Orleans Pelicans have been slow in Free Agency. They’ve re-signed Jrue Holiday, signed their lone draft pick Frank Jackson, and brought back Darius Miller on a deal for camp. The latter two are likely for the minimum, and Miller’s deal may be completely unguaranteed. I’ll effectively ignore his specific contract. Fans and writers […]
-
Leveraging a Sign and Trade of Dante Cunningham
The New Orleans Pelicans have not acquired a new player other than Darius Miller, likely on a minimum deal. Part of this is the slower pace of the offseason, and part of it is the Pelicans’ lack of assets while hunting for a certain kind of player of value. I wrote about nonguaranteed contracts last […]
-
Jrue Holiday Officially Re-Signs with the New Orleans Pelicans
As of this afternoon, Jrue Holiday has signed his 5 year, $126 million contract extension with the Pelicans. Holiday verbally agreed to this extension less than 12 hours after free agents were first allowed to negotiate with NBA teams on July 1st, but was only allowed to sign his contract at noon eastern time Thursday. […]
-
Darius Miller Returns
Scott Kushner tweeted out that our old friend Darius Miller will be returning to the team in some capacity. At this juncture, it is unclear what sort of contract Miller has, but one of our writers will add to this post once there is more clarity. I can confirm former #Pelicans 2nd-round pick, ¤t Euroleaguer, […]
-
Longer Hours
The New Orleans Pelicans made their first and only move of the 2017 NBA offseason in the initial hours of the moratorium, and things have been silent since. The Pelicans are not alone in this, as the number of transactions across the NBA is lower than last offseason. What’s the hold up? Around the NBA, […]
-
The Power of Nothing
The New Orleans Pelicans have made just one significant move this offseason, and that is signing Jrue Holiday to a 5-year deal. There needs to be more to help to shore up the playoff chances for the team, and to make a good show to help keep the stars they have and potentially entice another […]
-
Jrue Holiday Signs 5-Year Deal With Pelicans
The New Orleans Pelicans signed Jrue Holiday to a 5-year deal. The fifth year is a player option, and the deal is worth between $126m and $150m total, depending on incentives being met. Holiday just turned 27, is a one-time All-Star, and has 8 years of service in the NBA. He was drafted 17th overall, […]
-
Navigating Negotiations
The New Orleans Pelicans and Jrue Holiday are engaged in public and private negotiations on Jrue’s next contract. Negotiations are a game, which means they are often improperly analyzed, particularly in a market that is not free and inefficient. Let’s look at this negotiation and negotiations in more generality to see what we can learn, […]
-
Processing the Pelicans Process
Last season I spent some time early on pondering just what Dell Demps meant when he said the year would be about the process for the New Orleans Pelicans. I thought. I thought and thought and thought. I watched the games, looked at the play, checked the data and the stats, and I thought. Then, […]
-
Is Jrue Holiday “Clutch?”
**All stats from NBA.com** Clutch is not what you think. It’s not what Skip Bayless thinks and it’s not what Biff from the bar thinks, which is, crudely, “is this player greedy enough to take every close game’s final shot at the expense of a more efficient opportunity?” I don’t care about that evaluation and […]
-
Passing and The Two-Man Game
The New Orleans Pelicans is a team whose core is zagging when the NBA as a whole is zigging. We saw the Grizzlies and, to some extent, the Pacers have success with this kind of model. Those teams, however, never reached the promised land or even competed in a championship series. That is not to […]
-
2017-Finals-Inspired Thoughts for the Pelicans
The New Orleans Pelicans, like 27 other teams, are watching the 2017 NBA Finals from the comfort of their living rooms, literally or figuratively. The Finals are in many ways a repeat of the last 2 seasons. In an age where parity is almost achieved, other than the super teams, realistic expectations of titles dwindle, […]
-
The New Orleans Pelicans are in the market for this year’s Malcolm Brogdon
The New Orleans Pelicans have the 40th overall pick in this year’s NBA Draft. There are several different ways the team could go with this pick, from drafting and stashing a foreign player to developing a raw college prospect with a two-way G-League contract. The Pelicans need contributors though, and the cheaper they come, the […]