Leading up to the 2013 NBA Draft on June 27, Pelicans.com will provide a player-by-player examination of the New Orleans Pelicans, with input from various sources. We’ll review the 2012-13 campaign of each New Orleans player who appeared in at least half of the team’s games, while also looking ahead to the inaugural 2013-14 Pelicans season. Pelicans.com continues its offseason updates by profiling Brian Roberts, a surprise success story who debuted in the NBA in 2012-13, after playing overseas:
Key averages: 7.1 points, 2.8 assists in 78 games (5 starts)
WHAT HAPPENED
Following a solid performance with New Orleans at the 2012 NBA Summer League, Roberts was invited to fall training camp and eventually earned a roster spot. The University of Dayton product had spent the previous four seasons overseas and now – at age 26 – wanted to make one more attempt at playing in the NBA. The gamble paid off, as the 6-foot-1 point guard not only made the team, but also logged significant playing time by season’s end. Showing excellent shooting range from the get-go, Roberts finished his rookie NBA season at 38.6 percent on three-point attempts. He also was a superb 90.9 percent from the foul line, edging Roger Mason (90.7 percent) for team honors in that category. Although he began 2012-13 primarily as a score-first point guard, he improved his distributing skills as the campaign progressed. Roberts notched a pair of double-digit assist games in the final four weeks of the regular season, including 18 dimes in an upset victory over Denver. The Toledo native picked up four DNP’s due to coach’s decision, but was in the rotation for each of New Orleans’ final 21 contests, including five starts. From a personal standpoint, the highlight of 2012-13 for Roberts was the birth of son Cole on March 8, two days before his first-ever NBA start against Portland.
BEST GAME
New Orleans’ 110-86 victory over Denver on March 25 was noteworthy on a number of fronts. For one, it ended the Nuggets’ 15-game winning streak. For another, Roberts piled up 18 assists, the highest single-game assist tally by any NBA rookie throughout the entire ’12-13 season. In addition to the big assist tally, Roberts also scored 13 points (5-for-10 from the field) and collected five rebounds in 41 minutes of action.