New Orleans Pelicans Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Pelicans Sign Archie Goodwin, Cut Lance Stephenson

November 7th, 2016 at 12:50pm CST by Arthur Hill

NOVEMBER 7:

12:50pm: The Pelicans have announced their deal with Goodwin, signing him using their newly-opened 15th roster spot. Per Scott Kushner of The Advocate (via Twitter), it’ll be a two-year contract that won’t be guaranteed in the second year.

11:49am: The Pelicans have officially waived Stephenson, the team announced today in a press release. A report this morning suggested the team will be open to re-signing him when he gets healthy. Meanwhile, Goodwin’s signing has yet to be confirmed, but it’s expected to happen soon.

NOVEMBER 6:

7:53pm: The Pelicans are finalizing a deal with Goodwin, tweets Shams Charania of The Vertical, and the contract will be for two seasons (Twitter link). Stephenson will be waived to create the roster opening (Twitter link).

7:33pm: The Pelicans have interest in adding former Suns guard Archie Goodwin, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Stein describes Goodwin, who was waived by Phoenix last month, as a “likely potential signee.”

New Orleans lost Lance Stephenson Saturday night to a groin injury that is expected to require surgery. Doctors project his recovery time at several weeks. The Pelicans are already missing Tyreke Evans and Quincy Pondexter, who both have knee issues, along with Jrue Holiday, who is on a leave of absence to care for his ailing wife.

New Orleans could apply to the league for a hardship waiver to add a 16th player to its roster. A more likely option, tweets Scott Kushner of The Advocate, is simply to waive Stephenson, who only has a $100K guarantee on his minimum-salary contract. However, the Pelicans would be required to pay Stephenson’s full salary until he recovers from the injury.

Pelicans Open To Re-Signing Stephenson When Healthy

November 7th, 2016 at 10:26am CST by Luke Adams

11:12am: Stephenson is expected to miss between six and 10 weeks following his groin surgery tomorrow, sources tell Scott Kushner of The Advocate (Twitter link).

10:26am: While it’s not official yet, the Pelicans are expected to formally sign Archie Goodwin today, waiving Lance Stephenson to open up a roster spot. However, according to ESPN’s Marc Stein (Twitter links), New Orleans isn’t expected to sever its relationship with Stephenson upon his release.

As Stein details, the Pelicans intend to “participate fully” in Stephenson’s rehab from his groin injury and have told the veteran swingman that they’re open to the idea of re-signing him when he gets healthy. According to Stein, New Orleans didn’t want to cut Stephenson but didn’t see a viable alternative solution.

The Pelicans are currently carrying 14 players on guaranteed contracts, with Stephenson’s deal as the only one that isn’t fully guaranteed. Since they have multiple backcourt players sidelined, the Pelicans needed to make a move in a timely fashion, and according to Stein (via Twitter), the club’s case for a hardship waiver isn’t automatic, since Jrue Holiday is away from the team for personal reasons.

While New Orleans received criticism from some observers, including Stephenson’s former teammate Matt Barnes, for deciding to waive the 26-year-old following his injury, it seems the club is doing everything it can to accommodate his recovery, short of actually keeping him on the roster. Stein tweets that the Pelicans have told Stephenson they’re willing to participate in his injury rehab even if he wants to do it somewhere besides New Orleans.

Latest On Lance Stephenson

November 6th, 2016 at 4:49pm CST by Will Joseph

Lance Stephenson will be re-evaluated after the Pelicans announced Saturday he suffered a groin injury and would need surgery, and the expectation is for the shooting guard/small forward to miss weeks — not days, a source told Justin Verrier of ESPN.com.

The Pelicans are 0-6 and are already without Jrue Holiday (personal), Tyreke Evans (right knee) and Quincy Pondexter (left knee). They can apply for an injury hardship waiver, which allows a team to temporarily add a 16th player to the roster, but New Orleans is currently unlikely to do that, according to Verrier.

Stephenson’s contract is for the minimum, but is only guaranteed for $100K. Stephenson, who won a roster spot after the preseason, has averaged 9.7 points and 4.8 assists in 27 minutes per game during the team’s six contests this season.

Gentry Wanted To Trade For Hill Last Season

November 6th, 2016 at 12:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

Solomon Hill signed with the Pelicans over the offseason, but coach Alvin Gentry had his eye on the fourth-year small forward for a long time, relays Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic. Hill played college ball at Arizona while Gentry was the head coach in Phoenix, and Gentry wanted to trade for him last season. “I just think he’s a good, solid guy,” Gentry said. “He’s a guy who is trying to find himself in what we’re doing. I told him I think he’s trying to fit in too much. He’s a guy who just needs to be who he is. That’s why we signed him.”

Lance Stephenson Sidelined Indefinitely

November 5th, 2016 at 10:51pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Lance Stephenson has suffered a groin injury and he will need surgery, according to a team press release. Stephenson had an MRI earlier today and a timetable for his return has not yet been established.

Stephenson’s contract is for the minimum, but is only guaranteed for $100K. However, the team will be on the hook for his salary while he recovers from the injury, Bobby Marks of The Vertical notes (Twitter links). Marks adds that the Pelicans could be granted the hardship exception, allowing them to add a 16th player as soon as next Friday. New Orleans is already without point guard Jrue Holiday, who is out of the lineup indefinitely while caring for his wife.

Stephenson signed with the Pelicans during the offseason and beat out Alonzo Gee for a roster spot at the conclusion of the preseason. He averaged 9.7 points and 4.8 assists in 27 minutes per game during the team’s six contests this season.

Dante Cunningham Suspended For One Game

November 4th, 2016 at 3:26pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA has suspended Pelicans forward Dante Cunningham for one game without pay, the league announced today in a press release. The ban will keep Cunningham from suiting up for New Orleans’ game tonight against the Suns, as the Pelicans look for their first victory of the season.

As the NBA outlines in its announcement, Cunningham’s suspension comes as a result of the 29-year-old pleading guilty to “operating a motor vehicle in a negligent manner while exhibiting the effects of having consumed alcohol.” The one-game ban will cost Cunningham $27,075, per Bobby Marks of The Vertical (Twitter link).

Cunningham has averaged 21.4 minutes per contest in five games for the Pelicans so far this year, so those minutes figure to be divvied up among at least a couple other players tonight. Solomon Hill and Terrence Jones are among the players who could see increased playing time with Cunningham out.

Check out the Pelicans’ full roster and depth chart at RosterResource.com.

Community Shootaround: NBA’s Winless Teams

November 4th, 2016 at 10:11am CST by Luke Adams

On Wednesday, we examined the NBA’s five remaining undefeated teams, asking which clubs will be legit contenders this season and which ones will fall off after a hot start. Since then, four of those teams have lost a game, leaving the 5-0 Cavaliers as the league’s final undefeated club. However, there are still four teams that have yet to record a win.

The 0-5 Pelicans have gone winless despite the Herculean efforts of Anthony Davis, who has averaged 31.6 PPG, 11.8 RPG, and 3.0 BPG, posting games of 45 and 50 points. The 0-4 Mavericks have lost one game in overtime and another by a single point. The 0-4 Sixers have now lost 41 consecutive games in the months of October or November since 2013. And the 0-3 Wizards haven’t seen the floor much yet, but will have a few chances to pick up their first win soon, with three games in the next four nights.

While there was some excitement surrounding the 76ers coming into this season, buoyed by Joel Embiid‘s impressive showing so far, Philadelphia was never viewed as a serious contender this season, particularly after Ben Simmons went down with a broken foot. However, New Orleans, Dallas, and Washington all had playoff aspirations. Have we misjudged those teams, are will it just take them a few games to get going this season?

What do you think? Which of the NBA’s four remaining winless teams will turn things around, and which ones are well on their way to landing in the lottery? Do you expect to see any of these four clubs in the postseason next spring? Weigh in below in our comments section with your thoughts and opinions!

Pelicans Received $400K From Heat In Babbitt Trade

October 28th, 2016 at 10:13am CST by Luke Adams

Filling in the blanks on a summer trade, Pincus tweets that the Heat sent $400K to the Pelicans in the deal that saw Luke Babbitt land in Miami.

Pelicans Opted For Continuity

October 25th, 2016 at 9:31pm CST by Eddie Scarito

After opting for continuity a year ago, Pelicans GM Dell Demps brought in plenty of new talent this offseason, including Solomon Hill, E’Twaun Moore, and Langston Galloway. As John Reid of The Times-Picayune details, Demps is optimistic that fans in New Orleans will appreciate the “gritty” and “tough” players on the team’s roster.

Stephenson Out To Change Perceptions

October 25th, 2016 at 8:53am CST by Eddie Scarito

Lance Stephenson hung on to snag the Pelicans‘ final regular season roster spot, beating out Alonzo Gee, despite the fact that Gee had a fully guaranteed pact. Stephenson says his aim this season is to rebuild his reputation around the league, John Reid of The Times Picayune writes. ”My goal is to prove everybody wrong this year – work hard and show a different side of me,” Stephenson said. “Everybody got this expectation of me, I just want to show them a different side of me. I love the game, I just want to play ball. I can show that what I was doing for the Pacers, I can still do it. I just got to have an opportunity to be put in a position where I can do that.”

Stephenson also noted that he’s made a determined effort to get to know his Pelicans teammates and bond with them, something he hasn’t always done in the past, Reid adds. ”Teams that I’ve been on, I really didn’t [talk] to my teammates, I talked to them a little bit but,” Stephenson said. ”But this time, I was really, ‘Hi are you doing to today, what you do yesterday’ and stuff like that. It’s like being a rookie again, everybody got this image of me that’s a straight lie.”