New Orleans Pelicans Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Raptors Acquire Brandon Ingram From Pelicans

February 6th, 2025 at 9:34pm CST by Arthur Hill

FEBRUARY 6: The Raptors have officially acquired Ingram, the team confirmed in a press release.

“We see Brandon as an integral part of this team’s future – he’s an elite scorer, he has a really diverse offensive skillset, and adding him to the young core we have is huge as we continue our quest to win in Toronto,” team president Masai Ujiri said in a statement. “At the same time we welcome Brandon, we need to really thank Bruce and Kelly. They have been professionals and leaders and they’ve been great teammates and examples for all of us. We wish them all the best moving forward.”

FEBRUARY 5: The Pelicans will trade Brandon Ingram to the Raptors for Bruce Brown, Kelly Olynyk, a first-round pick and a second-rounder, according to Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).

The first-rounder will be a top-four protected 2026 pick that originally belonged to Indiana, sources tell Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Twitter link). The second-rounder will be the Raptors’ 2031 pick, tweets Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca.

Sam Amick of The Athletic reported earlier tonight that the Raptors and Hawks were “neck-and-neck” in their pursuit of Ingram, but Toronto found a way to get the deal done. Assuming he’s signed to an extension, the 27-year-old forward will be part of the long-term foundation in Toronto alongside Scottie Barnes, RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley.

Ingram will be eligible for an extension worth up to $144MM over three years through June 30, according to Bobby Marks of ESPN (Twitter link). Marks adds that the Raptors inherit Ingram’s Bird rights and can exceed the cap to sign him to a new deal in July when they will be roughly $50MM below the tax line.

Marks also notes (via Twitter) that Ingram’s current contract includes a 15% trade kicker that will increase his cap hit for this season from $36MM to $38.1MM.

With an expiring contract, Ingram has been on the market for months after he and the Pelicans weren’t able to agree on an extension last summer. New Orleans reportedly offered to use Ingram’s deal to help Miami facilitate a Jimmy Butler trade, then made its own offer for Butler last week.

Ingram has been sidelined with an ankle issue since December 7, and he still hasn’t been cleared for contact. He may not be able to play for a few more weeks, but that shouldn’t matter to Toronto, which is far out of the playoff race. Ingram is averaging 22.2 points, 5.6 rebounds and 5.2 assists in the 18 games he’s played this season.

Will Guillory of the Athletic notes (via Twitter) that Ingram was on the bench with his teammates for the first half of tonight’s game at Denver, but he didn’t return after halftime, suggesting that a trade was imminent.

Brown has a $23MM expiring contract, while Olynyk has one year left at $13.4MM. It’s possible that New Orleans will explore subsequent deals involving both players before Thursday afternoon’s trade deadline.

Brown, 28, built a reputation as a versatile utility man on several teams, culminating with the role he played in helping the Nuggets win the 2023 title. He turned that into a lucrative two-year deal with Indiana, but was traded to Toronto midway through last season and has been limited by injuries this year. He’s averaging 8.4 points, 3.8 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 17 games.

Olynyk, a 33-year-old big man, was in his first full season with Toronto after being acquired at last year’s deadline. He was putting up 7.0 points, 3.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 23 games.

Bruce Brown, Malcolm Brogdon Not Considered Buyout Candidates

February 6th, 2025 at 8:03pm CST by Tristan Tucker

Don’t count on Pelicans guard Bruce Brown or Wizards guard Malcolm Brogdon to reach the free agent market. According to reports from NBA insider Jake Fischer and The Athletic’s David Aldridge, neither player is expected to emerge as a buyout candidate (Twitter links).

The Pelicans are acquiring Brown in their Brandon Ingram trade with Toronto. While Brown spent much of the first half recovering from a knee procedure and has been limited him to 18 games this season, the Pelicans plan to hang onto him and the two sides have a level of interest in continuing their relationship if all goes well, says Fischer. Brown will have the rest of this season to get healthy as he plays out the last year of his contract (worth $23MM).

Brown was a valuable contributor on Denver’s championship team, earning a big payday from the Pacers before he was sent out in the move that brought back Pascal Siakam. He’ll undoubtedly have a bevy of suitors this offseason if he continues to show flashes of that version of himself. He’s averaging 8.4 points and 3.8 rebounds per game this season.

Likewise, Brogdon certainly would’ve drawn interest on the buyout market, but the Wizards value him as a veteran mentor, according to Aldridge. He and newly acquired vets Khris Middleton and Marcus Smart are expected to serve in that role for the remainder of the season. Brogdon is on an expiring $22.5MM contract.

Like Brown, Brogdon has dealt with injuries. Over the past two years, he has been limited to 60 total appearances with Washington and Portland. In 21 games this season (13 starts), he’s averaging 13.1 points, 4.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists.

Holding onto Brogdon means the Wizards will have to find another way to open up a roster spot if they have interest in converting either of their two-way players to a standard contract this year. Justin Champagnie has been a regular contributor for the squad, averaging 7.8 points on 38.0% shooting and making 13 starts this season.

Due to their sizable cap hits, neither Brown nor Brogdon would be eligible to sign with a first- or second-apron team if they were bought out.

Trade Deadline Notes: Martin, Draft Pick Details, Cash

February 6th, 2025 at 5:06pm CST by Luke Adams

The 2025 NBA trade deadline is now behind us.

It was a wild week leading up to the trade deadline, with Luka Doncic, Anthony Davis, De’Aaron Fox, Jimmy Butler, Zach LaVine, and Brandon Ingram among the accomplished stars reported to be on the move even before deadline day arrived on Thursday.

Several more deals were agreed upon in the hours before the deadline, with the East-leading Cavaliers striking a deal for Hawks forward De’Andre Hunter and established vets like Marcus Smart, Bogdan Bogdanovic, and Jusuf Nurkic also changing teams.

The full list of in-season trades – both official and still pending – can be found right here. We’ll continue to update that tracker as more details are reported and more details are officially processed.

It’s also worth noting that several notable trade candidates remained with their current teams through Thursday’s deadline. The Nets made multiple trades earlier in the season, but didn’t move Cameron Johnson, Nic Claxton, Day’Ron Sharpe, or anyone else this week. The Trail Blazers, another potential seller, stood pat, with Robert Williams, Jerami Grant, Anfernee Simons, and Deandre Ayton all remaining in Portland.

The Jazz and Bulls each made deal, but rumored trade chips like John Collins, Jordan Clarkson, Collin Sexton, Walker Kessler, Nikola Vucevic, Patrick Williams, and Lonzo Ball weren’t involved in them.

The Knicks only made a minor move, preferring to stick with Mitchell Robinson and bet on his return to health rather than acquiring another center. The Magic, Timberwolves, and Nuggets were among the few teams who stood pat, opting not to make a single in-season deal.

The Pacers, Celtics, Rockets, and Thunder all had pretty quiet deadlines too, only taking part in salary-dump deals (either sending or receiving).

Here are a few more deadline-related notes that we didn’t want to slip through the cracks as we look to stay on top of all the roster moves being made and trade details still being reported:

The Mavericks had the option to void their Caleb Martin trade with the Sixers after his return from a right hip sprain was determined to be a little further off than anticipated, tweets NBA insider Marc Stein. However, the Mavs were comfortable moving ahead with the deal after Philadelphia added a second-round pick, since they don’t expect Martin to be out too long. They’re optimistic he’ll be back in action within about two or three weeks, sources tell ESPN’s Tim MacMahon (Twitter link).
The second-round pick the Pistons are acquiring in the multi-team Butler deal is a 2031 second-round pick from the Warriors, per Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Golden State previously gave Minnesota swap rights on that pick, so Detroit will receive the least favorable of the Warriors’ and Timberwolves’ 2031 second-rounders.
The Grizzlies‘ 2025 first-rounder headed to the Wizards in their Smart trade includes top-14 protection, reports David Aldridge of The Athletic (Twitter link). Given Memphis’ current 35-16 record, it’s a pretty safe bet that pick won’t land in its protected range.
The Bucks are sending cash to all three of the other teams involved in their Khris Middleton/Kyle Kuzma deal, according to Fred Katz of The Athletic (Twitter link). The Wizards are getting $1MM from Milwaukee, the Knicks are getting $2MM, and the Spurs are receiving $4.13MM. The Bucks were only able to trade cash because they’re moving below the second tax apron as part of that deal.
The Pelicans received $1MM in cash from the Thunder in the trade that sent Daniel Theis and a future second-round pick to Oklahoma City, reports Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report (Twitter link). Oklahoma City has since waived Theis.

Trade Rumors: Boucher, Nuggets, Vucevic, Pelicans, Suns

February 6th, 2025 at 1:11pm CST by Luke Adams

The Nuggets are a suitor to watch for Raptors big man Chris Boucher, according to Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca (Twitter links).

However, even though Denver “definitely” has interest in Boucher, the team is extremely limited in terms of both draft assets and appealing matching salary. Its two most expendable veterans, Zeke Nnaji ($8.9MM) and Dario Saric ($5.2MM), are both on multiyear contracts, making them negative trade assets.

The Nuggets are also operating above the first tax apron, so they can’t take back more money than they send out in a trade. They would likely “jump” at the chance to sign Boucher on the buyout market, Grange says, but it’s unclear if Toronto would consider a buyout for the big man if he’s not traded today.

Here are a few more trade rumors from around the NBA:

As of two hours before the trade deadline, there was no momentum toward a Nikola Vucevic deal between the Warriors and Bulls, says K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Sports Network (Twitter links). If Vucevic ends up staying in Chicago through the deadline, the expectation is that he’d be on the trade block again in the offseason, Johnson notes.
Pelicans forward Zion Williamson and guard CJ McCollum aren’t going anywhere at the trade deadline, according to Marc J. Spears of Andscape, who said on ESPN’s NBA Today that both players are on track to remain in New Orleans after the team agreed to trade Brandon Ingram to Toronto.
The Suns‘ Jusuf Nurkic trade with Charlotte is expected to be the only deal Phoenix makes today, according to John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 (Twitter link). That means the team will move forward with its “big three” of Devin Booker, Kevin Durant, and Bradley Beal despite many rumors involving Durant and Beal leading up to today’s deadline.

Trey Murphy On Scoring Binge; Dejounte Murray Posts Photo After Surgery

February 5th, 2025 at 5:47pm CST by Arthur Hill

Trey Murphy has become the second player in Pelicans history to reach 40 points in two straight games, notes Rod Walker of NOLA. He scored 24 points in the third quarter Monday night, which ties a franchise record for most points in a quarter.
Pelicans guard Dejounte Murray posted a photo from his hospital bed after undergoing surgery for a torn Achilles tendon (Twitter link). “Thank you God for a successful surgery,” Murray wrote. “Road to recovery starts now.”

Warriors Shift Focus Back To Jimmy Butler

February 5th, 2025 at 3:51pm CST by Luke Adams

After getting word that Kevin Durant was opposed to the idea of reuniting with Golden State, the Warriors have opted to move on to other trade targets, ending their pursuit of the Suns forward, Sam Amick and Anthony Slater of The Athletic confirm, echoing earlier reports.

According to Amick and Slater, the Warriors were willing to make a substantial offer for Durant and might have been in position to land him if he’d been even lukewarm on the possibility of coming back to the Bay Area, but they didn’t want to risk having to deal with a disgruntled KD.

On the subject of disgruntled stars, Amick and Slater say it’s still up in the air whether the Warriors will get back in the mix for Heat forward Jimmy Butler, who has also made it clear he’s not enthusiastic about the idea of being traded to Golden State.

However, NBA insider Marc Stein reports (via Twitter) that the Warriors have indeed shifted their focus back to trying to acquire Butler.

Golden State’s pursuit of Butler has seemingly been on and off again for the better part of a month. Shortly after the 35-year-old formally requested a trade, reports indicated that the Warriors didn’t plan to seek out a deal for him, but they exhibited renewed interest last week when the Heat’s asking price reportedly dropped.

Although ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said over the weekend that the Warriors were once again backing off Butler after he communicated that he wasn’t interested in signing an extension with the team, reports this week have suggested that Golden State was never fully out of the hunt. With Durant seemingly off the table, it makes sense that the Warriors would once again circle back to the Heat star.

As has been the case for weeks, the Suns and Warriors appear to be the frontrunners for Butler. Phoenix has been unable to work out a deal structured around Bradley Beal due to his no-trade clause and pricey contract, but if the Suns are willing to consider the idea of trading Durant to Miami for Butler, the Heat would certainly be interested, writes Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald.

A swap along those lines would likely require Miami to attach a handful of sweeteners (draft picks, young players, etc.) to entice Phoenix — a third team may also still be necessary due to the Suns’ and Heat’s apron-related restrictions.

A Warriors offer for Butler would likely be centered around Andrew Wiggins, expiring contracts, and draft assets. Dennis Schröder‘s expiring deal (worth $13MM) would probably be part of Golden State’s package, according to Stein (Twitter link).

A team source tells The Athletic that the Warriors remain “determined” to get something done before Thursday’s deadline, so if they miss out on Butler, they could end up pivoting to a secondary target such as Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram or Bulls center Nikola Vucevic.

Regarding Ingram, Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Twitter link) says the Pelicans have gained some traction on potential deals involving the star forward. Fischer and Stein have reported that the Raptors and Hawks are among the teams talking to New Orleans about Ingram.

As for Vucevic, K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Sports Network (Twitter links) has heard that the Warriors aren’t sure about pursuing the big man at Chicago’s asking price, but suggests a deal remains possible if Golden State can’t land a bigger-name target and/or the Bulls’ price comes down.

Pelicans Trade Daniel Theis, Second-Round Pick To Thunder

February 5th, 2025 at 3:21pm CST by Luke Adams

3:21 pm: The trade is official, according to a press release from the Thunder, who sent out cash considerations in exchange for Theis and either New Orleans’ or Orlando’s 2031 second-round pick (whichever is least favorable).

1:01 pm: The Pelicans are trading center Daniel Theis to the Thunder along with draft compensation, reports Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).

Oklahoma City will receive a 2031 second-round pick in the deal, according to NBA insider Marc Stein (Twitter link). New Orleans previously traded swap rights on that pick to Orlando, so the Thunder will receive the least favorable of the Pelicans’ and Magic’s second-rounders in ’31.

It’s a salary dump for New Orleans, which had been operating about $1.4MM above the luxury tax line. The Pelicans are one of two NBA teams to have never paid the tax and weren’t about to start this season for a team that currently holds a 12-38 record.

Moving Theis’ $2.1MM minimum-salary contract, which expires at season’s end, allows the Pelicans to duck out of tax territory.

If New Orleans doesn’t make any additional trades today or tomorrow, this deal will leave the team with just 13 players on standard contracts. By NBA rule, the Pelicans would need to re-add a 14th man within two weeks of trading Theis. A prorated minimum-salary signing at that point would still allow them to narrowly remain below the tax threshold.

Despite their NBA-best 39-9 record, the Thunder aren’t constricted by the tax aprons like many of the league’s other contenders. Prior to this trade, Oklahoma City’s team salary had been hovering right around $160MM, giving the club plenty of room below the $170.8MM tax line to take on additional money.

The Thunder also have an open spot on their 15-man roster, so they won’t need to waive anyone to make room for Theis, who can be acquired using the minimum salary exception.

It’s unclear if the Thunder plan to hang onto Theis after acquiring him or if they’re just making the deal for the draft compensation. The veteran center could provide some frontcourt depth in OKC after averaging 4.3 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 1.6 assists in 16.3 minutes per game across 38 outings (nine starts) for the Pelicans.

A rookie big man, Branden Carlson, has occupied the Thunder’s 15th roster spot for much of the season to date, first on a non-guaranteed contract and then on a pair of 10-day deals. If the team hangs onto Theis and doesn’t make any additional moves to open spots on its 15-man roster, a two-way deal would be the only path for Carlson to rejoin the squad.

Kevin Durant ‘Highly Unlikely’ To Be Traded To Warriors

February 5th, 2025 at 2:04pm CST by Luke Adams

2:08 pm: ESPN’s Shams Charania confirmed during an appearance on NBA Today that Durant has no desire to rejoin the Warriors (Twitter video link).

According to John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 (Twitter link), it’s now “highly unlikely” that Durant will be traded to Golden State. Confirming that Durant wants to stay in Phoenix, Gambadoro says there was momentum toward a Durant/Warriors deal in the last 24 hours, but that momentum is gone.

There still may be a path to a Heat/Suns trade centered around Durant and Butler, according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst and Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald (Twitter link), but it’s unclear if Miami could sufficiently sweeten the pot with enough additional assets to get Phoenix to make that move.

2:00 pm: With Kevin Durant at the center of trade speculation leading up to Thursday’s deadline, Marc Stein and Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Substack link) report that there’s a “distinct sense percolating” that the Suns forward would prefer not to be traded this week.

Unlike his teammate Bradley Beal, Durant doesn’t hold a no-trade clause and doesn’t have the ability to veto a deal if the Suns decide they want to move him.

Beal’s no-trade clause and unfavorable contract have prevented Phoenix from finding a way to swap him out for Heat forward Jimmy Butler, which is a key reason why the Durant rumors have picked up in recent days. As we relayed this morning, a multi-team trade that sends Durant to Golden State and Butler to Phoenix is reportedly considered a possibility.

While Golden State has frequently been cited as the team pursuing Durant most aggressively, there’s a belief that the former Warriors star would have “serious reservations” about reuniting with his former team, according to Stein and Fischer.

As The Stein Line’s duo writes, Durant left the Warriors in 2019 due to his desire for a change of scenery, and there was a sense at that time that he no longer wanted to play with Draymond Green.

Of course, it’s not out of the question that Green could be part of a trade package for Durant in a multi-team scenario, Stein and Fischer write. That echoes reporting from Sam Amick of The Athletic (YouTube link) and Brian Windhorst of ESPN (YouTube link), both of whom suggested that the Warriors’ longtime defensive stalwart isn’t untouchable in trade talks.

The Warriors would realistically need to send out at least one of Green ($24.1MM) or Andrew Wiggins ($26.3MM) for matching purposes in a deal for any maximum-salary player like Durant, but Wiggins has been viewed as the more likely outgoing piece.

While a Tuesday report indicated that Phoenix has interest in Green, the Suns wouldn’t have a viable path to acquiring him and Butler as part of a return for Durant due to their second-apron limitations.

One source briefed on the trade talks told Stein and Fischer that the Warriors may still be inclined to try to trade for Durant even if they don’t believe he’d enthusiastically welcome a second go-round in the Bay Area.

Here are a few more items of interest from Stein and Fischer:

The Stein Line’s duo confirms a prior report which stated that the Wizards will probably to hang onto Khris Middleton through the trade deadline after agreeing to acquire him from Milwaukee. Washington is expected to try to trade Middleton at some point, Stein and Fischer say, but it’s more likely to happen during the offseason.
The Pelicans continue to talk to the Raptors and Hawks about possible Brandon Ingram trades, and there are still multi-team scenarios in play in which Ingram could be involved in a Butler deal, according to Stein and Fischer.
After ducking below the tax line in the Daniel Theis deal with Oklahoma City, New Orleans will be careful not to cross back over that threshold in any Ingram deal. The Pelicans also aren’t inclined to take on multi-year money, and if they were offered a player on a longer-team contract like Hawks guard Bogdan Bogdanovic as part of a package for Ingram, they’d likely ask for additional draft compensation on top of their “high valuation” for the star forward, Stein and Fischer report.

Cavaliers, Hawks Have Discussed Hunter, LeVert

February 5th, 2025 at 8:39am CST by Luke Adams

The Cavaliers have expressed interest in Hawks forward De’Andre Hunter, multiple sources tell Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (subscriber link), confirming a report from HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto. According to Fedor, the Cavs’ talks with Atlanta have centered around swingman Caris LeVert.

Due to the difference between Hunter’s current cap hit ($21.7MM) and LeVert’s ($16.6MM), Cleveland would have to send out at least one more player in any deal involving the Hawks forward to avoid surpassing the first tax apron, according to Fedor, who suggests that rookie Jaylon Tyson ($3.3MM) would be one possibility. Atlanta may also seek draft assets — Cleveland controls its 2031 first-round pick, along with a few second-rounders.

According to Fedor, the Cavaliers have had Hunter on their radar for years, dating back to the 2019 draft when he went fourth overall to Atlanta, one pick ahead of Cleveland at No. 5. Sources tell Cleveland.com that the Cavs have done “extensive” homework on the 27-year-old, frequently inquiring over the years about his availability and what it would take to acquire him.

Hunter is having the best year of his career in 2024/25, averaging 18.9 points per game on .459/.386/.858 shooting through 36 outings (28.5 MPG). He’s also the sort of long, athletic wing that the Cavaliers have long been seeking and is close friends with guard Ty Jerome dating back to their days at the University of Virginia, Fedor notes, so Cleveland would be confident about his fit.

As Fedor reports, the Cavs have also checked in on several other possible trade candidates, such as Cameron Johnson (Nets), Jerami Grant (Trail Blazers), Javonte Green (Pelicans), Cody Martin (Hornets), Chris Boucher (Raptors), Julian Champagnie (Spurs), Obi Toppin (Pacers), and Royce O’Neale (Suns). However, the front office is wary about messing with the chemistry of a team that sits atop the Eastern Conference with a 40-10 record.

Cavs players and head coach Kenny Atkinson discussed that aspect of the trade deadline on Tuesday, per Fedor.

“You have to listen,” Atkinson said. “You’d be really not smart if you didn’t listen and talk about how you can get better. It’s the business we’re in. We’re really good, obviously, but it could always be something out there that gets us to the next level. My one thing to [president of basketball operations] Koby [Altman] is we have great chemistry right now and a great culture, great locker room culture. That’s super important to me. If it is a trade, if it is a buyout, it’s got to be the right fit.”

“If you take away somebody, especially somebody in the locker room, a locker room presence, it’s gonna disrupt it,” center Jarrett Allen said. “At the end of the day, we’re all close to each other. But as you know, that’s how things go.”

Both Allen and Donovan Mitchell said on Tuesday that they believe the Cavaliers have enough to be a title contender. Still, the front office is keeping an eye out for ways to make upgrades. Sources tell Fedor that Cleveland is also considering the idea of making a small trade or two around the margins, with another big man among the possibilities the club is weighing.

If the Cavs don’t make a move at the trade deadline, they’ll likely take a look at the buyout market, according to Fedor, who points to Lonzo Ball as a player to watch, though a Tuesday report suggested the Bulls won’t be eager to buy out Ball if they hang onto him through the deadline. Torrey Craig, who was waived by Chicago earlier this week, is another player to monitor, Fedor adds.

Pelicans Rumors: Ingram, Hawks, Tax, Theis, Green, Robinson-Earl, Boston

February 4th, 2025 at 5:43pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Hawks are among the teams who’ve called the Pelicans to gauge the price tag on forward Brandon Ingram, league sources told Michael Scotto of HoopsHype. Atlanta’s interest in Ingram was previously reported by The Stein Line.

Ingram, who has a 15 percent trade kicker unless he chooses to waive it, will be an unrestricted free agent after the season. Ingram has been out since Dec. 7 due to a left ankle sprain and there’s still no timetable for his return.

In talks between the Hawks and Pelicans, Scotto hears New Orleans would be reluctant to take back future salary, including the contract of Bogdan Bogdanovic, who’s owed $16MM for the 2025/26 season and has a team option worth $16MM for the 2026/27 season.

It still could be a hard sell for New Orleans to complete an Ingram deal. The Pelicans have been fielding offers for Ingram since last summer, but there hasn’t been much traction on a potential trade, The Athletic’s William Guillory reports.

Here’s more on the Pelicans:

Along with gauging interest in Ingram and his $36MM expiring contract, another item on the agenda for the Pelicans is ducking the luxury tax, Scotto adds. League executives anticipate that Daniel Theis ($2.8MM salary this season), Javonte Green ($2.425MM) and/or Jeremiah Robinson-Earl ($2.2MM) could be on the move.
Guillory said the franchise also must decide if it is committed to retaining Zion Williamson long-term and whether to obtain assets by trading CJ McCollum to a contender.
Once the trade deadline passes, there’s a strong belief the Pelicans will convert two-way guard Brandon Boston Jr. to a standard contract, according to Scotto. Boston has already appeared in 41 games, including 10 starts, averaging 10.7 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 23.9 minutes. Two-way players have a 50-game limit before a team must decide whether to offer a standard deal, waive them, or leave them in the G League the rest of the season.