New Orleans Pelicans rumors: NBA Cup In-Season Tournament court leaked

Under Commissioner Adam Silver, the NBA has made some monumental changes over the past few years. Some of the most notable shifts in the league have come within its rules and operations. Under Silver, the NBA has implemented the transition take foul rule, eliminated the "Hack-a-Shaq" strategy, introduced coach's challenges, and more.

Silver's regime has also overseen the transfer to a new CBA, or Collective Bargaining Agreement, with the NBA Player's Association. This latest contract has brought in some significant changes to the league, including a 65-game requirement for the league's major awards and the installment of the infamously dreaded "second apron."

Aside from the new rules and CBA, Silver has also significantly changed the infrastructure of the NBA. The two most important examples are the Play-In Tournament, which has seeds 7-10 in both conferences competing in a pre-playoff firefight to earn the last two spots in the official bracket. The other major alteration to the NBA schedule that Silver has brought is the NBA Cup, or In-Season Tournament.

The inaugural NBA Cup occurred last season, with the Los Angeles Lakers winning the bragging rights as well as a handsome cash prize for all of their rostered players. The idea behind the NBA Cup was to inject more interest, from both the players and the fans, into the regular season, to help improve viewership and combat load management. To further emphasize the importance and prestige of the tournament and the group games, Silver and the NBA implemented special courts for the NBA Cup matches, to make it obvious to the fans that they were watching a special occasion and bring an air of exceptionalism to the competition.

NBA's 2024 NBA Cup courts potentially leaked

Recently, the NBA's new Nike City Edition jerseys were leaked to the public to a range of reactions (mostly negative). Last year's NBA Cup courts were also not well received. There were countless complaints that the courts were ugly, distracting, and even disgraceful to the sport. While some of the critiques were dramatic, there were some valid points raised about the new hardwood.

If these new leaks are true, then it appears that Silver and the league were listening to the fans and implemented some much-needed changes. Taking a look at the rumored new courts, two major changes stick out. Firstly, the NBA smartly removed the gaudy third running down the length of the middle of the hardwood that was randomly a different color from last year. That line was disconcerting and aesthetically repulsive.

Secondly, the league added unique designs for each team that represented their franchise and/or city. New Orleans's leaked court features a subtle echo of the Pelicans logo in the background of the court. The hardwood also displays the two of the Pellies' colors with a red border and a navy imprint inside the bounds. Personally, it feels like a big step up from last season's blue and neon green court. We'll see if these leaks turn out to be true.