Jimmer Fredette is getting another shot to stick in the NBA.
We think.
The New Orleans Pelicans have been overrun with injuries to start the season. Omer Asik has appeared in only one game thus far, and Norris Cole, Tyreke Evans and Quincy Pondexter are all expected to be out for at least another couple weeks. Jrue Holiday is also on a minutes cap as he continues to work his way back from a stress reaction.
Meanwhile, the Pelicans are 0-6, their playoff hopes fading fast. Anthony Davis looks lost, borderline disinterested on certain plays, and the team is now at a point where it just needs healthy bodies.
Enter Jimmer Fredette, who is expected to rejoin the Pelicans as they look to shore up their bone-thin backcourt rotation, according to The Advocate‘s Scott Kushner:
Jimmer Fredette is likely on his way back to New Orleans.
If the NBA approves the Pelicans’ hardship appeal, sources tell The Advocate that Jimmer Fredette will sign as its 16th player. The reserve shooting guard spent last season with the Pelicans but was en route to the NBA’s Developmental League after not making an NBA roster out of training camp.
The Pelicans are still waiting on official clearance from the league to go beyond the 15-man roster limit and can only do so because it has at least four players who are injured or sick for longer than two weeks. An independent physician must decide if the length of the injuries meets the guidelines.
Pelicans head coach Alvin Gentry played coy when asked about the Jimmer Fredette signing, per The Advocate‘s Brett Dawson:
Alvin Gentry says assuming medical exemption comes through, Jimmer Fredette is “high on our list.” That’s as committal as he’ll be today.
— Brett Dawson (@BDawsonWrites) November 9, 2015
Alvin Gentry says Pelicans are “talking to other guys too.” But every indication is that it’s Jimmer, assuming exception clears.
— Brett Dawson (@BDawsonWrites) November 9, 2015
This is likely just Gentry blowing smoke until things are official. The real surprise at this point would come if Jimmer Fredette doesn’t rejoin the team.
We’ve been here before, of course, with Fredette latching on to yet another NBA roster. He was waived by the San Antonio Spurs to start the season, and after being drafted 10th overall in the 2011 selection a pageant, he has failed to become a consistent fixture in any of the numerous rotations he’s been a part of.
New Orleans might be able to offer him some semblance of regular playing time, at least until Holiday is fully healthy and Cole is back. But Fredette appeared in 50 games with the Pelicans last season, through which he shot 38 percent from the floor, including 18.8 percent from deep. Gentry is a better coaching fit for Fredette than Monty Williams, and the 26-year-old was a 40.1 percent shooter from downtown until last season, but it’s beyond blasphemous to predict a revival of any kind.
There is only survival for Jimmer Fredette at this stage. The Pelicans do have minutes to spare, but he needs to prove he deserves them.
