New Orleans Pelicans Rumors | Hoops Rumors

DeMarcus Cousins Next Target For Lakers?

June 30th, 2018 at 9:51pm CST by Arthur Hill

With Paul George looking more likely to stay with the Thunder, the Lakers are turning their attention to DeMarcus Cousins, tweets Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer. League sources say that L.A. is considering a short-term max offer for the free agent center.

Cousins was headed for a full max deal in New Orleans before suffering a torn ACL in January. The Pelicans grabbed the No. 6 seed without him and advanced to the Western Conference semifinals, raising questions of whether the organization would be fine without him.

Cousins has played less than a full season in New Orleans after being acquired in a trade with the Kings, but he has put up All-Star numbers. In 65 games, he averaged 25.0 points and 12.7 rebounds while forming a dangerous frontcourt combination alongside Anthony Davis.

The Lakers, who have been seeking another star to help attract LeBron James to Los Angeles, could use some help up front. Incumbent starter Brook Lopez is a free agent and Ivica Zubac is the only center currently on the roster. O’Connor notes that in 2017, James referred to Cousins “the best big man in our game.”

In an interview last month with Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated, Cousins said he is happy with the progress he has made and he hopes to be ready for training camp.

“Just getting this amount of time to rest my body, I’ve never had this much rest probably since I picked up a basketball.” Cousins said. “I feel like it’s been tremendous for my body. I feel great. I feel fresh. I feel brand-new. It’s crazy to say.”

Robert Pack Agrees To Join Wizards’ Staff

June 29th, 2018 at 9:47pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Robert Pack has agreed to join the Wizards as an assistant to Scott Brooks, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets.

Pack has been an assistant coach with the Pelicans since the 2015/16 season. He’s also coached with the Clippers and Thunder after beginning his coaching career with New Orleans in 2009.

Pack should be a good influence on Wizards star guard John Wall, David Aldridge of NBA.com tweets. Pack, 49, had a long NBA career than began in 1991 and included stops with seven different franchises.

Pelicans May Show Interest In Crawford; Latest On Rajon Rondo

June 29th, 2018 at 12:37pm CST by Luke Adams

We heard on Thursday that multiple Warriors players are lobbying for the front office to go after Jamal Crawford in free agency, but Golden State isn’t the only team that will kick the tires on the veteran scorer. According to Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated, the Pelicans, Sixers, Cavaliers, and Nuggets are also expected to show interest in Crawford, who is focusing on finding the right fit.

Rajon Rondo and DeMarcus Cousins are good friends, but Rondo would like to re-sign with the Pelicans regardless of whether Cousins stays or goes, per Spears.

No Qualifying Offer For Charles Cooke

June 28th, 2018 at 8:02am CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pelicans will not make Charles Cooke a qualifying offer, Michael Scotto of The Athletic tweets. Cooke, an undrafted 6’5” shooting guard out of Dayton, appeared in 13 games for the Pelicans.

Harden Tops James, Davis For MVP Award

June 25th, 2018 at 9:56pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Rockets guard James Harden was named the league’s Most Valuable Player during the NBA’s second annual awards show.

Harden topped the Cavaliers’ LeBron James and the Pelicans’ Anthony Davis for the league’s most coveted individual award. Harden finished second in the voting last season to the Thunder’s Russell Westbrook.

Harden led the league in scoring at 30.4 PPG. He was fourth in assists (8.8) and second in 3-pointers made per game (3.7) while also finishing in the top 10 in steals (1.8). Houston’s regular-season success, with its league-best 65-17 record, played a role in Harden’s victory.

The Cavaliers needed James’ Herculean efforts just to finish fourth in the East. He averaged 27.5 PPG, 8.6 RPG and 9.1 APG while appearing in all 82 contests.

Davis led the Pelicans to the playoffs, and a first-round knockout of the Trail Blazers, despite DeMarcus Cousins‘ season-ending Achilles injury. He posted averages of 28.1 PPG, 11.1 RPG and 2.6 BPG.

Here are the other awards announced on Monday night:

Rookie of the Year: Ben Simmons, Sixers
Coach of the Year: Dwane Casey, Raptors
Sixth Man of the Year: Lou Williams, Clippers
Defensive Player of the Year: Rudy Gobert, Jazz
Most Improved Player: Victor Oladipo, Pacers

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Rudy Gobert Named Defensive Player Of Year

June 25th, 2018 at 8:38pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Jazz center Rudy Gobert was named the league’s Defensive Player of the Year at the NBA’s second annual awards show.

Pelicans superstar Anthony Davis and Sixers center Joel Embiid were the other finalists.

Gobert was a finalist in 2017 but the award went to the Warriors’ Draymond Green. Gobert finished second to Davis in blocks this past season with an average of 2.27 per game but his overall defensive excellence won him the honor.

Pelicans Notes: Cousins, Rondo, Carr, Staff

June 24th, 2018 at 5:42pm CST by clarkcrum

DeMarcus Cousins is still recovering from a torn left Achilles he suffered in January, but the All-Star center, who becomes an unrestricted free agent on July 1, has been documenting certain aspects of his rehabilitation process on social media and appears to be fully embracing the challenge, reports William Guillory of The Times-Picayune.

According to Pelicans’ general manager Dell Demps, Cousins has been working out in Las Vegas and hasn’t experienced any setbacks during his recovery, with the big man’s desire to get back on the court as strong as ever.

“He’s right on schedule. He’s right where he’s supposed to be (and) he’s committed to getting back and ready to play.”

That being said, it remains to be seen whether the Pelicans will be able and/or willing to sign Cousins to a new contract this summer, with the Mavericks being one of many teams who will likely have interest in Cousins’ services going forward.

As Guillory notes, New Orleans was once poised to offer Cousins a five-year maximum-salary contract this summer. However, a story from ESPN’s Zach Lowe in April reported that the Pelicans were now considering the idea of offering Cousins a shorter deal at less than the max because of the uncertain future that often accompanies an Achilles injury.

Despite that report, Demps continues to reiterate that the team wants Cousins back in New Orleans, telling reporters that Cousins has been a big part of the Pelicans’ success and that he hopes the team is able to being Cousins back next season.

There’s more from New Orleans:

In the same article, Guillory also touches upon the upcoming free agency of point guard Rajon Rondo, who like Cousins, will become an unrestricted free agent on July 1. The Pelicans are planning to enter into negotiations on a new deal with Rondo, per Demps, who notes that “in a perfect world,” both Cousins and Rondo would be back in New Orleans next season.
With their only selection in the 2018 NBA Draft, the Pelicans selected Penn State guard Tony Carr with the No. 51 overall pick. Carr, 20, averaged 19.6 points and five assists per game for the Nittany Lions last season, but his role for New Orleans next season is still up in the air. Per Jim Eichenhofer of Pelicans.com, Demps has already expressed that Carr will need to compete for a roster spot as a rookie
In another story for The Times-Picayune, Guillory writes that the Pelicans are emphasizing stability with their coaching staff this offseason, with the front office recently denying a request from Toronto to hire away assistant coach Chris Finch.
Per Jake Fischer of Sports Illustrated, the Pelicans’ front office scouting department has been retained with two-year extensions.

Pelicans May Be In The Market For Dwight Howard

June 21st, 2018 at 10:43pm CST by Arthur Hill

Chief among those options is expected to be DeMarcus Cousins of the Pelicans, who is still recovering from a torn Achilles he suffered in January. The Mavericks could also make a play for the Rockets‘ Clint Capela, who will be a restricted free agent, or the Clippers‘ DeAndre Jordan if he decides to opt out of his current deal. Another possibility is Dwight Howard, who is expected to reach a buyout agreement with the Nets once a trade from the Hornets is complete. Dallas has expressed interest in Howard before, and he is likely to be more affordable than ever.

The Pelicans might be worth watching in the pursuit of Howard, according to Chris Mannix of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). Like the Mavericks, they have tried to acquire him before and he could be a low-cost replacement if they can’t re-sign Cousins.

Mavs Optimistic About Signing DeMarcus Cousins

June 21st, 2018 at 11:35am CST by Dana Gauruder

The Mavericks believe they have a strong chance of signing DeMarcus Cousins in free agency, according to Michael Scotto of The Athletic. Cousins, coming off a season-ending Achilles tendon injury, will be an unrestricted free agent next month. While the Mavericks’ interest in Cousins has previously been reported, Scotto’s story suggests the Mavericks are ready to make him a hefty offer to lure him away from the Pelicans. If the Mavs pass on Texas big man Mohamed Bamba with the No. 5 pick, that would reinforce the notion they’ll go all in to secure the services of either Cousins or the Rockets’ restricted free agent center, Clint Capela.

Scotto also has several other notable items to pass along:

The Sixers discussed the possibility of packaging the No. 10 and 26 picks, along with last year’s top pick Markelle Fultz, to move into the top five of the draft with Michael Porter Jr. as their target. However, lingering concerns over Porter’s back have cooled their interest in making that move.
Tobias Harris‘ expiring contract is part of the package the Clippers are dangling to move up in the lottery. They have back-to-back picks at Nos. 12 and 13.
The Hawks are trying to make a deal with the Clippers or Nuggets (No. 14) in order to nab Miami (Fla.) guard Lonnie Walker IV. They are looking to package their picks at Nos. 19 and 30.
The Nets are dangling point guard Spencer Dinwiddie and the No. 29 pick in order to move into the middle of the first round.
The Rockets have received calls on guard Eric Gordon and could move him in order to get a mid-first-rounder.

Coaching Moves: Sixers, Raptors, Pelicans, Suns

June 19th, 2018 at 9:43pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Sixers have named Connor Johnson as their G League coach, the team announced in a press release. Johnson will coach the Delaware Blue Coats after working the past four seasons working with the 76ers coaching staff. The newly-named Blue Coats will play in the new 76ers Fieldhouse in Wilmington. Johnson was Philadelphia’s director of player development and coaching administration last season.

In other coaching-related news around the league:

The Raptors were denied permission from the Pelicans to hire Chris Finch as an assistant coach, Marc Stein of the New York Times tweets. New Raptors coach Nick Nurse was an assistant under Finch on Great Britain’s Olympic team in 2012 and was hoping to bring his well-regarded knowledge of offensive schemes to Toronto, Stein adds in another tweet.
The Pelicans did lose one of their assistants as Jamelle McMillan, son of Pacers coach Nate McMillan, joined Igor Kokoskov’s staff with the Suns, Marc Spears of ESPN tweets. The younger McMillan is just 29 years old.
The Raptors hired Jama Mahlalela as head coach of their NBA G League affiliate, Raptors 905, the team’s media relations department tweets. Mahlalela, who has five years of experience as an NBA assistant, replaces Jerry Stackhouse. Stackhouse, who led the team to consecutive G League Finals, joined the Grizzlies’ staff after being interviewed for multiple NBA head coaching jobs.