Reports are out that Pelicans star Brandon Ingram has missed a voluntary minicamp that started last week. Ingram and Daniel Theis were the only players on the team to miss the optional minicamp put on by the team. This allowed murmurs of his future with the Pelicans to gain traction due to his ongoing contract negotiations. Missing minicamp and still not receiving a contract extension is fueling Brandon Ingram rumors before the start of the 2024-25 NBA season.
Brandon Ingram Rumors Intensify After Missing Mini Camp
The good vibes of the young Pelicans roster are in jeopardy with Ingram missing minicamp. The reality is that players miss minicamp for a variety of reasons, and sometimes it doesn’t mean much. The difference with this situation is there was an expectation from the Pelicans front office that Ingram would attend.
Brandon Ingram did not attend a week-long voluntary minicamp held by the Pelicans players in California, per @WillGuillory
The minicamp featured every player on the roster except Ingram and recent signee Daniel Theis.
The Pelicans believed Ingram would be there, but he never… pic.twitter.com/7bxRLlpWPl
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) September 5, 2024
Ingram Contract Negotiations
Ingram wants to get paid. He currently is up for a max NBA contract, and the Pelicans don’t seem particularly interested in offering it. The Pelicans already have a few bigger contracts on the books with Zion Williamson and Dejounte Murray. Ingram also has had disappointing monents during his time there. The Ingram rumors make people think the Pelicans don’t trust him to lead a winning team, something they desperately want to have.
Dejounte Murray just posted about Brandon Ingram on his IG story. pic.twitter.com/MkYmaNbzLX
— Brady (@sideshowbrady) September 2, 2024
It’s not like Ingram hasn’t been productive. The forward has averaged 23.1 points, 5.5 rebounds and 5.2 assists in 287 games for the Pelicans. Those numbers are nothing to sneer at, but numbers aren’t everything. A common complaint about Ingram is that he doesn’t seem to always have that fire in him on both ends of the floor. The Pelicans would love to give Ingram all the money he wants if he were able to put up those numbers on a nightly basis, but intensity and injury concerns have been Ingram’s downfalls.
Ingram Injuries Are Cause For Concern
Ingram hasn’t played more than 64 games in a season for the Pelicans. He seems to have the potential to be a star, but he hasn’t been able to string together a fully healthy season since his 79-game rookie campaign with the Los Angeles Lakers. Last season alone, he missed games two different times with a hurt knee or Achilles, and once with illness.
The Brandon Ingram Rumors Pick-Up
Because Ingram hasn’t inked a new deal, and now with missing minicamp, the trade rumors are starting to gain traction. The Pelicans have said they want to keep Ingram, but things aren’t looking so definite at the moment. Ingram rumors have been gaining traction every day that the forward doesn’t ink his extension.
Ingram has been linked to multiple teams since the offseason began. The Warriors, Spurs, Jazz, Heat, Cavaliers, and Pistons are just a few of the teams that are linked with Ingram. Each one at least had to take a look at what Ingram could bring to their teams. At this point though we have to listen to what the team has shown which is they aren’t willing to give him a max extension. The Pelicans would be foolish to let Ingram walk for nothing next offseason. Time will tell if any of the Ingram rumors turn out to grow legs.
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