New Orleans Pelicans

PelicansCast: Season Insights from ESPN’s Andrew Lopez

HB PelicansCastMay 18, 2020

This week on the Pelicans' Scoop, Lyle is joined by Andrew Lopez from ESPN to discuss the season that was (and still could be), direct from New Orleans!

PelicansCast: Chat with Stephen Vidovich and Game 3…

HB PelicansCastMay 11, 2020

This week on the Pelicans' Scoop, Lyle is joined by Stephen Vidovich to chat all things Pels, upcoming content on Hoop-Ball.com and much more! Then Lyle winds back the clock to 26 October 2019 for Game 3 @ Houston!

PelicansCast: The Rewind Continues: Game 2 and the…

HB PelicansCastApril 29, 2020

This week on the Pelicans' Scoop, Lyle keeps the history lesson alive with a look at Game 2 of the 19/20 season against Dallas and a discussion on the New Orleans Buccaneers

Fantasy Snapshot: New Orleans Pelicans

Hoop Ball Fantasy FeaturesApril 25, 2020

The Pelicans are loaded with young talent but who were the biggest fantasy contributors for this new-look team. Here is an overview of their fantasy season so far.

Season So Far: New Orleans Pelicans

Hoop Ball Fantasy FeaturesApril 24, 2020

Hoop Ball editor Erik Ong takes a look at the Pelicans' season so far and how well they were able to move on in the post-Anthony Davis era.

PelicansCast: Turning Back The Clock To The Season…

HB PelicansCastApril 16, 2020

This week on the Pelicans' Scoop, Lyle turns the clock back to the 19/20 season opener against the Raptors, then continues right back to 1948 and the New Orleans Sports, he finishes off with a discussion about Derrick Favors.

PelicansCast: The Origins of New Orleans Basketball &…

HB PelicansCastApril 7, 2020

The Pelicans podcast is officially back! The long awaited return of the Pels Podcast is back! Today, Lyle discusses the origins of basketball in New Orleans, a little trip into the history books and of course, some Pelicans chat!

PelicansCast: Tough Sledding Ahead

HB PelicansCastJanuary 13, 2020

The injury bug has struck the Pelican veterans and the team has a tough schedule ahead. Nick Guarisco and Michael Pellissier talk about what to expect moving forward.

The Kids Are Alright

New Orleans PelicansJanuary 11, 2020

Michael Pellissier acknowledges the growth of the young players during the recent string of success for the Pelicans.

PelicansCast: Things are.. Good?

HB PelicansCastJanuary 8, 2020

Derrick Favors is healthy, Lonzo Ball is playing his best basketball of the season, and the Pelicans are.. good?

Taking Lonzo Into Context + Other Notes

New Orleans PelicansJanuary 3, 2020

Michael Pellissier gives context on Lonzo Ball and details some other current events.

Welcome Back, Derrick Favors

New Orleans PelicansDecember 27, 2019

Michael Pellissier makes note of the Pelicans' progress and how it is likely somehow related to Derrick Favors coming back into the fold.

Jaxson Hayes: Analyzing Rebounding

New Orleans PelicansDecember 20, 2019

Jaxson Hayes is undoubtedly one of the most positive storylines of the Pelicans season. Because of the amount of time Derrick Favors and others have had to miss, Hayes has gotten considerably more playing time…

PelicansCast: The Transition Between Win-Now and Player Development…

HB PelicansCastDecember 17, 2019

In the midst of a 12-game losing streak, is it time to give up on the 2019-20 New Orleans Pelicans? Nick Guarisco (@FantasyLawGuy) and Michael Pellissier (@Mike_Pelicans) have answers you may not want to hear.

Acknowledging A Broken Defense

New Orleans PelicansDecember 14, 2019

Michael Pellissier acknowledges the terrible defense that is driving the Pelicans' plummet into better lottery position.

Recent News ♦ Fantasy Analysis

Zion Williamson

PF, New Orleans Pelicans

Zion Williamson (right knee) has been able to rehab at team facilities during the league shutdown.

While he did not work out on the court, Williamson did have access to training staff with the goal of keeping his knee flexible. He is expected to be ready for game action if the season resumes.

Source: NOLA.com

May 20, 2020, 1:42 pm

Kenrich Williams

PF, New Orleans Pelicans

Kenrich Williams (lower back soreness) was able to visit team facilities for rehab purposes during the league shutdown.

Williams is progressing well and should be able to practice with the team in the near future. However, he does not play enough to merit a fantasy roster spot should the season resume.

Source: NOLA.com

May 20, 2020, 1:38 pm

Zion Williamson

PF, New Orleans Pelicans

Zion Williamson's former marketing representative, who he has since cut ties with, called upon him to admit his parents had demanded and received gifts from Nike, Adidas and Duke, in hopes of convincing him to sign with the shoe monoliths and the university respectively.

Williamson sued Gina Ford and Prime Sports in June, in an effort to end his contract with her company. Williamson's attorneys claimed the contract was in violation of North Carolina's Uniform Athlete Agents Act since Prime Sports is not recognized by the NBA Players Association or an acknowledged athlete agent in North Carolina or Flordia. It would not be a shocker to discover Williamson received some under the table incentives from the competing shoe companies or NCAA teams hoping to acquire his services on the basketball court, but this should not change his fantasy circumstances for whenever the NBA suspension is lifted. While Williamson clearly has the ability to stuff the stat sheet, he'll have to improve upon his free-throw shooting (.645), and his meager steal (0.8) and block rates (0.5) to become an early-round asset next season.

Source: ESPN

May 10, 2020, 8:24 pm

Nickeil Alexander-Walker

SG, New Orleans Pelicans

On the Pelicans Podcast, Nickeil Alexander-Walker told Daniel Sallerson that he had his cast removed recently and was able to avoid surgery to repair a hairline fracture in his right wrist.

Alexander-Walker had the cast on his wrist for roughly five weeks and it is good news that Alexander-Walker's wrist was able to heal without having surgery. He should be ready to play when/if the season resumes at some point this summer/fall.

Source: NBA.com

April 29, 2020, 4:02 pm

Lonzo Ball

PG, New Orleans Pelicans

David Griffin said that Lonzo Ball and Zion Williamson have "a very special connection" with one another on the basketball court.

Ball and Williamson have both burst onto the fantasy scene this year, and having a long, versatile point guard tossing up lobs to Zion's insane athleticism is a perfect fit. Out of the shadow of LeBron and all the nonsense that comes with playing for the Lakers, Ball was rolling at early-round levels before the season was suspended. It looks like he and Williamson will be working that alley-oop connection for years to come, which is music to the ears of fantasy owners.

Source: Oleh Kosel on Twitter

March 22, 2020, 6:37 pm

Zion Williamson

PF, New Orleans Pelicans

The Pelicans-Kings game has been cancelled on Wednesday.

The center for the Utah Jazz, Rudy Gobert, tested positive for Coronavirus on Wednesday. It was later discovered that one of the refs working the Pelicans-Kings game refereed a Jazz game on Monday which prompted league officials to cancel the game.

Source: Robert Littal on Twitter

March 11, 2020, 10:47 pm

Jrue Holiday

PG, New Orleans Pelicans

Jrue Holiday carried the load on Sunday in Minnesota, leading the Pelicans to a win with 37 points (13-for-20 FG, 8-of-9 FT), nine rebounds, eight assists, a steal, a block and three 3-pointers.

Holiday set a new season-high in scoring today and it was good to see a line like this after he's been playing like more of a support player while New Orleans' younger charges have been outstanding. Holiday is as safe as it gets in the early-middle rounds and has top-20 upside. Hopefully this is the start of a production binge.

March 8, 2020, 6:41 pm

Lonzo Ball

PG, New Orleans Pelicans

Lonzo Ball kept his foot on the gas on Sunday, tallying 18 points, five rebounds, eight assists, two steals and four more 3-pointers.

Ball has hit 21 threes over his last four games and despite today's seven turnovers, even 9-cat GMs are loving the Pelicans version of his game. Ball has been, well, balling, and is cooking with early-round value right now. Enjoy the ride.

March 8, 2020, 6:39 pm