There’s been a bit of buzz producing some New Orleans Pelicans rumors in NBA Free Agency, but so far, we don’t know what direction the team will decide to go.
NBA Free Agency officially kicks off at 6 PM Eastern tonight, but several big pieces of news have already broken leading up to today. We know that Kyrie Irving intends to sign with the Brooklyn Nets, and Kemba Walker looks set to take his role in Boston. We’ve heard D’Angelo Russell will meet with the Timberwolves (for some reason), and Nikola Vucevic will stay with the Magic. But to this point, we don’t have anything “concrete” regarding New Orleans Pelicans rumors.
As of right now, Woj or Shams haven’t dropped any bombs about players allegedly sitting down with David Griffin right at 6 o’clock. We haven’t heard any “news” about Player X reportedly planning on signing any sort of contract. There have been a couple a tidbits of information trickling out, including the team having some interest in Tobias Harris of the Philadelphia 76ers and Al Horford of the Boston Celtics.
Still, the New Orleans Pelicans might not end up being real contenders for these players. Harris is now more heavily linked to teams like the Sixers, Nets, Knicks, and Mavs, and the Pelicans seem to have cooled their jets on Horford (if the rumored interest was ever even true).
Al Horford may have followed Jrue Holiday and Zion Williamson on Twitter today … but the Pelicans are not actively pursuing Horford as the opening bell of free agency draws near, league sources say
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) June 30, 2019
Outside of this, not much else is really going on in the world of the New Orleans Pelicans as far as NBA Free Agency goes. This could mean one of two things: Either this is simply the calm before the storm before David Griffin surprises us all with moves totally out of left field, or the team simply doesn’t feel the need to get crazy with their cap space this summer.
The Pelicans have money to blow; over $30 million, to be more specific. This is enough capital to lure a star talent if the team wanted to. However, this summer just might not be the right time to make big moves in free agency. Eventually, the team is going to have to offer extensions to guys like Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, and Josh Hart if they want to keep them around, so there could be some wisdom in being frugal today in order to save for the future.
Even if this is the case, we should still expect some additional roster moves. However, they will likely be shorter term deals for cheap veterans to help mold these young players, or fliers on inexpensive prospects that could end up being hidden gems with the right development. Whatever happens, we’ll find out soon.
As NBA Free Agency news breaks regarding the New Orleans Pelicans, stay tuned into Pelican Debrief for updates along the way.