The New Orleans Pelicans are set for a nice rebound after a rough year last season afdter trading for stars Tyreke Evans and Jrue Holiday and after making those moves, another player who has been involved in trade rumors himself in Eric Gordon, is finally happy about his place with the franchise.
According to SB Nation, Gordon is happy about the moves the Pelicans have made after moving draft oick Nerlens Noel for Holiday and bringing over Evans in a three team deal, as now the franchise has the pieces to make a playoff run. Gordon had been unhappy since trying to sign with the Suns as a restricted free agent and now he is glad to be in the team situation. The Pelicans could also try to make a deal for restricted free agent Gerald Henderson, according to Yahoo Sports, in a sign and trade, but right now that is just talk and a deal is not close.
Gordon has been supporting his teammates, as he came to the summer league to cheer on his teammates and show his support, coming to Vegas from Los Angeles, where he is rehabbing from an ankle injury that needed surgery. Gordon said he would be back for more games and Pelicans coach Monty Williams said that his star is a good guy and that people can forget that sometimes after what happened with the restricted free agent offer he received from the Suns last year.
Last season Holiday went to the All-Star game and averaged 17.7 points and 8.0 assists, while Evans is now the most talented point guard the team has had since Chris Paul, averaging 15.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.5 assists last season and now the Pelicans are ready to turn things around, The team also brought back Al-Farouq Aminu on a one-year, $3.7 million contract and also signed a number of other players to bolster the bench. The team feels it's ready for a quick turnaround under new ownership and they hope the new deals will help make that a reality.
Gordon wanted the four-year, $58 million offer from Phoenix, but New Orleans matched and after that while he dealt with injuries, there was constant speculation that he would be traded. He missed the first 29 games of the season before returning and then after that he did not play much, as he was limited to less than 30 minutes per game through April. Gordon said he was excited after the team acquired Jrue Holiday and Tyreke Evans, as they are two of the most exciting young players in the game and they have All-Star potential.