Pelicans’ Brandon Ingram, Willie Green shared eye-opening ‘exchange’

NBA reporter Shams Charania said in Stadium’s Inside the Association that the Pelicans will have a lot of factors to ponder on when deciding the fate of Brandon Ingram, including a pivotal moment in his relationship with Head Coach Willie Green.

“[T]here were frustrations throughout Brandon Ingram as far as where he stood late in the playoffs…sitting in one of the late games during the play-in tournament. And I’m told Ingram and Willie Green had an exchange at Game 2 [of their NBA Playoffs first-round series against the Thunder] in the locker room. Sources tell me Ingram essentially told Green he wanted the ball, he wanted Green to help him get the ball,” Charania said.

“[G]iven how quiet Brandon Ingram is in nature, that direct approach with Green and how he spoke up toward the head coach was a seminal moment in the locker room. It did have a lasting impact since the end of the season,” said Charania. “That relationship is something to keep an eye on going into an important summer for Ingram and for the Pelicans as they decide how to dictate the future.”

“You have to give Brandon Ingram the credit, he did get out of an injury late in the season, played through it and he’s shown over the course of his career in New Orleans that he can be the guy that can lead this team, and he can carry this team especially when they play without Zion Williamson,” noted Charania.

The Pelicans will have see how much they are comfortable with and the value in paying Ingram’s contract extension. However, the team also may consider building around Zion Williamson, who has shown his capability when healthy.

“But with [Williamson] back and knowing that you build around a guy like that, what happens with Ingram’s future as well as CJ McCollum if they are, as [General Manager] David Griffin said, going to look to get better and make changes,” Charania noted. “[Williamson] is…that guy that you can build around and they tend to continue to do so. For him, it’s always been about help. That’s the biggest factor we saw down the stretch of the season that hampered him.”