BOSTON – Roughly a half-hour after New Orleans’ shootaround at TD Garden wrapped up, the Pelicans officially announced that they had acquired Quincy Pondexter in a multi-team deal. On their way to other teams are Austin Rivers and Russ Smith, meaning the Pelicans now have 13 players on their roster. Pondexter will be joining the team soon, but at the moment New Orleans is expected to have 12 players available for Monday’s game against the Boston Celtics.
By NBA rule, Pelicans players and coaches were not allowed to discuss the Pondexter addition until the move was officially approved, but Monty Williams will be able to do so during pregame tonight. He is expected to meet with the media at approximately 5 p.m. Central time. Tip-off of Pelicans-Celtics is 6:30 (NBA TV, Pelicans Radio Network).
Other notes from Monday’s shootaround:
- Ryan Anderson on the road trip: “It’s a great challenge for us. We can’t take any of these teams lightly. It’s going to be a challenge for us to refocus, play hard and play the way we want to play every night. We just have to be consistent with our pace and style of play. Tonight is going to be one of those challenges, because this is a real up-and-down team.”
- Anderson on importance of trip: “If we come back from this road trip with a successful record, it’s going to be huge for us, going forward in the season. We need to prove that we can win these games.”
- Asked by a Boston reporter if it can be easy for New Orleans to overlook teams like struggling Boston, Anthony Davis said, “No. We’ve just got to go out there and know what we do best. We kind of get off slow, and not just in Eastern Conference games, but some are Western Conference games, too. We’ve just got to know our style of play, know our basketball, and stick with it.”
- Davis on Tyreke Evans' willingness to come off the bench for Pelicans: “It means a lot. He sacrifices for the team. He does a great job himself in the second unit, being able to handle the ball, create for himself and others. The court is more open with the second unit. It’s just a testament to the type of person he is and how he wants the team to get better.”