Pelicans news: Zion fires representation, injury update, NBA Cup failure

The New Orleans Pelicans are in a freefall. Almost a quarter of the way through the 2024-25 NBA season, they currently sit at 4-13, now in sole possession of the 15th seed in the Western Conference.

They've come into these losses through a variety of different means. That said, it feels almost meaningless to try to dissect and analyze their performance this year, as they've been so shorthanded that it's impossible to truly gauge this team. Practically the entire core of the Pelicans have missed time and many of them remain out for the foreseeable future, including superstar Zion Williamson and newly acquired All-Star point guard Dejounte Murray.

While there's not much to take away from this franchise's recent on-court production, there's been plenty of interesting storylines to break outside of the lines this year. Here are some of the most imperative current news stories surrounding the Pelicans.

Pelicans news dump: Zion's representation, new injury update, and Pelicans' NBA Cup shortcomings

Zion Williamson parts ways with his agency

According to The Athletic's Will Guillory, Zion Williamson has parted ways with Creative Arts Agency (CAA) and his agent, Austin Brown. It's not yet clear why Williamson has made this business move, but the NBA's Players Association has confirmed that he's no longer with CAA. CAA is one of the most popular agencies in professional sports and has a ton of clients in the NBA.

Williamson is currently in the second season of his five-year, $197 million max contract extension that he signed with the Pelicans a few years ago. Because he only played 29 games in the 2022-23 season, a kicker in his new contract was activated, making the last three years of his deal non-guaranteed. This means that New Orleans could technically waive Zion at the end of this season without any kind of financial repercussions.

Zion expected to be out for longer than initially expected

ESPN's Shams Charania recently reported that Zion Williamson's hamstring strain may be a more devastating injury than was first implied. Charania stated that the grade of his strain aligns with a typical 4-6 week timetable, but he's been told by his sources that the Pelicans are quietly bracing for Z to be out longer than that, which means he may not be back until well-after mid-December.

By that time, it might be too late for the Pelicans to try to regain ground in the playoff race. If so, they could choose to keep Williamson on the sidelines for the rest of the year in pursuit of a top draft pick and to give him adequate time to get fully healthy. This injury update could have lasting ramifications for New Orleans.

Pelicans eliminated from the NBA Cup

On Friday, November 23, the Pelicans were downed by the Golden State Warriors in their NBA Cup Group Stage clash, 108-112. New Orleans played admirably amid all of their absences but were ultimately eliminated from the knockout rounds with that loss. They're now 1-2 in group play, with a -38 point differential.

That game not only made the Pelicans to first team to be mathematically ineligible to advance, but it also guaranteed the Dubs a spot in the bracket. Among everything that injuries have already taken away from New Orleans so far this season, it's also robbed them of a chance to improve upon their upstart NBA Cup performance from last year.