It was supposed to be a new era for the New Orleans Pelicans. After trudging through another miserable season mired in injuries, the team finished just 21-61, good for 14th in the Western Conference and 27th overall in the NBA.
After yet another campaign ended in disaster in the exact same manner — with several key players finishing the year in street clothes — the Pelicans had finally had enough. They kicked off the offseason by firing former Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations David Griffin and replaced him with Joe Dumars.
The former Detroit Pistons exec wasted no time enacting his new vision for the team. So far, Dumars has already made three trades, one to acquire incendiary scoring guard Jordan Poole from the Washington Wizards and two revolving around the 2025 NBA Draft to ensure that he got his guys. While there are plenty of critics for each of the deals he's made so far, even they would have to admit that the aggression he's showing is a refreshing and necessary change of pace for a team that's seemingly been stuck in mud for several years. And yet, the Pelicans just made another baffling move that's quite reminiscent of the previous era they just tried to leave behind.
New Orleans Pelicans decline Brandon Boston Jr.'s team option for seemingly no reason at all
On Sunday, June 29, the New Orleans Pelicans made two moves just a day ahead of the start of 2025 NBA free agency. They declined the team options for both Elfrid Payton and Brandon Boston Jr.
Payton has played so many different stints with New Orleans that cutting him again feels almost funny, if it weren't so cruel. It only makes it worse that he performs at an admirable level and becomes a fan favorite each time, too. But, it's clear at this point in his career that Payton should be an end-of-bench, break-in-case-of-emergency depth piece at best in the NBA, so parting ways with him wasn't that hard to fathom.
Brandon Boston Jr. is a whole different story, though. The former Kentucky Wildcat is still just 23 years old and showed plenty of promise for the Pelicans last season. In a little over 23 minutes per game, he averaged 10.7 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 2.2 assists on 44 percent shooting from the field and 35 percent marks from beyond the arc.
He got his points in a variety of ways, too, oftentimes looking like one of the most comfortable shot creators on the roster for New Orleans. For a team so desperately short on reliable wing depth and self-sufficient offense, it's difficult to justify declining his measly $2.35 million team option for next season.
He did have season-ending ankle surgery in April, but he's expected to be ready for the start of the 2025-26 campaign. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem like he'll be suiting up for the Pelicans.
Perhaps the team has some plan in the works to fill out their wing depth. Or maybe Brandon Boston Jr. will just make them regret this seemingly short-sighted decision next year by balling out for a different team.