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Pelicans tribute to Bryce Dejean-Jones

Jim Eichenhofer

LAS VEGAS – The last time Jameel McKay talked to Bryce Dejean-Jones, the two former Iowa State teammates discussed their dream scenario of reuniting in the NBA as members of the New Orleans Pelicans. Six weeks later, McKay has joined the Pelicans and is part of their summer league team, but his friend is gone. Dejean-Jones died May 28 in Dallas, while visiting the city to celebrate his daughter’s first birthday.

McKay and his New Orleans summer teammates are honoring the memory of Dejean-Jones, who was 23 years old, by wearing a “BDJ” patch on the left chest of their uniforms. The Pelicans play their first game tonight against the Los Angeles Lakers (9:30 Central) on ESPN.

“I talked to Bryce two days before the incident,” McKay said of a late-May phone call. “I was hoping I’d play for the Pelicans in summer league (if McKay went undrafted), because I knew they were interested in me, so we were talking about being teammates again.

“When I heard about what happened, it was just shocking. Everyone called me for confirmation, but I couldn’t give it. I didn’t know.”

The summer Pelicans coincidentally also have a high school classmate of Dejean-Jones on their roster. Point guard Larry Drew II, who excelled in ’15 summer league while playing with Dejean-Jones, went to the same Taft Charter High in Woodland Hills, Calif., near Los Angeles. Dejean-Jones was expected to play in ’16 summer league and in late May was roughly one week from completing his recovery from a broken right hand. Dejean-Jones played 14 games for New Orleans during the 2015-16 regular season, starting 11 times.

“It’s tough. It’s a tough situation,” Drew said of Dejean-Jones’ death. “We are from the same place. Watching him grow up and actually get the opportunity to achieve his goal of playing in the NBA, even being a part of helping him reach that, that was special for me.

“It’s a tragedy to say the least. I feel like I’m definitely out here playing for him here, and everything I do the rest of my career. He was a great dude, a very positive kid.”

McKay said one thing that stood out most about Dejean-Jones as a player was his relentless pursuit of reaching his NBA dream. After going undrafted in June 2015, he excelled in summer league with New Orleans and eventually signed a multi-year deal, initially on the team’s roster via a 10-day contract.

“He had a never-give-up attitude,” McKay said. “He went undrafted and took the hard way into the NBA, but he never questioned his ability and stuck with it. When he made it, it never came as a surprise to me, because I knew his abilities. It was just whether someone gave him an opportunity.”

“Every time I was around Bryce, I got the sense he knew where he wanted to be and he wasn’t going to let anything stop him from getting there,” said the 26-year-old Drew, trying to control his emotions. “He was fearless. He wasn’t afraid of the challenge and embraced it, and he got to achieve his goal of making it to the NBA.

“I felt like I was his big brother, and he was my little brother. That’s why it really hits home for me.”

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Summer league Pelicans honor memory of Bryce Dejean-Jones with jersey patch

Pelicans.com

Following the sudden passing of New Orleans guard Bryce Dejean-Jones on Saturday, Pelicans teammates as well as players and teams around the association took to Twitter to offer their condolences and memories of Bryce.

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Pelicans teammates, NBA remember Bryce Dejean-Jones

NEW YORK – NBA Commissioner Adam Silver released the following statement regarding the passing of Pelicans guard Bryce Dejean-Jones:

“The NBA family mourns the tragic loss of New Orleans Pelicans guard Bryce Dejean-Jones.   Bryce inspired countless people with his hard work and perseverance on his journey to the NBA, and he had a bright future in our league. Our thoughts and sympathies are with Bryce's family and the entire Pelicans organization during this difficult time.”

nba-statement-on-the-passing-of-bryce-dejean-jones

NBA Statement on the Passing of Bryce Dejean-Jones

Vice president of digital media for New Orleans Pelicans.

NEW ORLEANS – The New Orleans Pelicans released the following statement on the passing of Bryce Dejean-Jones:

“It is with deep sadness that the Pelicans organization acknowledges the sudden passing of Bryce Dejean-Jones. We are devastated at the loss of this young man’s life who had such a promising future ahead of him. Our thoughts and prayers are with Bryce’s family during this difficult time.”

pelicans-statement-on-the-passing-of-bryce-dejean-jones

Pelicans statement on the passing of Bryce Dejean-Jones

Pelicans.com continues its look back at the 2015-16 season with player-by-player analysis of the team:

2015-16 OVERVIEW
New Orleans began the regular season with no rookies and few ultra-young players on its roster, but the signing of Bryce Dejean-Jones in January began a wave of adding contributors with upside and room to improve. Although he only played in 14 games before a broken right wrist ended his season just as it was beginning to take off, Dejean-Jones showed versatility and the ability to be an impact player on both ends of the floor. The Iowa State product initially demonstrated his NBA potential during a quality performance in Las Vegas during ’15 summer league, but the athletic wing was cut by New Orleans during training camp due to a roster crunch, particularly at point guard (the Pelicans needed to sign Ish Smith and Toney Douglas for games in the first week of the regular season).

The unfortunate series of teammates injuries and subsequent release eventually led to a D-League stint for Dejean-Jones, but once he got an opportunity to play for New Orleans, he quickly impressed. In his first NBA start – while still on an initial 10-day contract – the California native delivered 14 points and three three-pointers to help beat Sacramento.

“He surprised a lot of us,” Pelicans assistant coach Phil Weber said. “We felt he was pretty good, but he jumped up and had some good games for us.
“He had such a good summer league and we liked him. Us bringing him back (to the roster), we feel he can do things both offensively and defensively. We’re going to focus on all aspects of his game. We need players that are two-way players, and Bryce is a two-way player right now. He’s young and his maturity will grow. We’re excited to have a young player in the system that potentially could become a solid rotation guy.”
While logging a total of 279 minutes, Dejean-Jones showed a knack for making an impact on both ends of the floor, a valuable trait for a New Orleans team in its push to make more hustle plays and improve defensively.

“He’s a basketball player – he has an innate knack for getting his hands on the ball, coming up with strips, one or two a game,” Weber said. “The potential is there. We were very pleased with what he did in the minutes he got.”

When the end of the regular season concluded, Dejean-Jones was waiting to be cleared to return to basketball activity from the injury to his shooting wrist. He’s looking forward to seeing the additional strides he can make in Year 2 of his pro career.

“I’ll be working on my whole game, all parts,” he said. “When I got to play I tried to do whatever I could to help the team win on both ends of the court. What happened was an unfortunate situation, because I was looking forward to keeping improving and working toward next season.”

TOP THREE BRYCE DEJEAN-JONES GAMES OF 2015-16

#3, Jan. 30: New Orleans 105, Brooklyn 103
In his second NBA start, Dejean-Jones supplied eight points and nine rebounds to help the Pelicans hold off the Nets. Jrue Holiday scored the game-winning hoop in the final seconds with a tough two-point jumper.

#2, Feb. 4: L.A. Lakers 99, New Orleans 96
Although it came in a frustrating home loss, this was Dejean-Jones’ career-best scoring game (17 points) and tied for his top rebounding effort (9 rebounds). The rookie played a whopping 43 minutes, 14 seconds; his next-largest playing time of the season was 35:58.

#1, Jan. 28: New Orleans 114, Sacramento 105
Making a surprise start, his first in the NBA, Dejean-Jones was a big factor, scoring 14 points while adding two rebounds, two assists, two steals and one block. He was 3/6 from three-point range.

8-6: New Orleans record in the 14 games Dejean-Jones played, one of its best stretches of the season. The Pelicans were 6-3 at home, 2-3 on the road (just 7-29 in the other away games).

1: Player on the Pelicans’ season-ending roster younger than Dejean-Jones (born Aug. 21, 1992). Anthony Davis (March 11, 1993) is the only player to fit that description.

11.2: Scoring average for Dejean-Jones over a five-game span from Jan. 28 to Feb. 4. He also averaged 5.6 rebounds and 1.6 steals during that stretch.

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Season in Review 2015-16: Bryce Dejean-Jones

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Gallery: Bryce Dejean-Jones Season in Review 2015-16

NEW ORLEANS - The New Orleans Pelicans announced today that guard Bryce Dejean-Jones underwent successful surgery this morning to repair a right wrist fracture. He will miss the remainder of the 2015-16 season.

Dejean-Jones, 6-6, 203, has appeared in 14 games (11 starts) for the Pelicans, averaging 5.6 points and 3.4 rebounds in 19.9 minutes per game.

Prior to joining New Orleans, Dejean-Jones played for the Idaho Stampede of the NBA Development League, appearing in nine games (seven starts), averaging 19.2 points, 4.7 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 2.0 steals in 31.1 minutes per game.

Undrafted out of Iowa State, Dejean Jones was a member of the Pelicans’ 2015 Las Vegas Summer League team and training camp roster. In six summer league contests, Dejean-Jones averaged 12.8 points on .619 shooting from the field, including .500 from three point range, to go along with 1.8 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 1.2 assists in 21.7 minutes per game. Appearing in all seven preseason contests for New Orleans, Dejean-Jones averaged 8.9 points, 1.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists.