Bryce Dejean-Jones had some exciting summer-league moments.
The undrafted shooting guard has parlayed them into an NBA contract.
Shams Charania of RealGM:
Sources: Bryce Dejean-Jones of Iowa State agrees to partially guaranteed 3-year deal with the New Orleans Pelicans. http://t.co/6pdHK1Vbmn
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 14, 2015
The Pelicans now have 13 players plus Norris Cole, who’s a restricted free agent. The other 12 besides Bryce Dejean-Jones have fully guaranteed salaries for this season, so additional signings could push Dejean-Jones down the pecking order. But as it stands, he’s in line to make the team.
Dejean-Jones played at USC, UNLV and Iowa State – feuding with teammates and coaching along the way. Perhaps, those problems and transfers contributed to him falling through the cracks.
The 6-foot-5 guard is comfortable with the ball in his hands – probably a little too comfortable. Dejean-Jones must adapt to a more-complementary role in the NBA.
He has some upside, though, and this is a decent bet by the Pelicans. If he works out, they’ll get a few cheap seasons from him. In the more likely event he doesn’t, he won’t cost much.
Considering the Pelicans don’t have their own D-League affiliate, they’re not signing him with the intention of waiving him and assigning his rights. They’re in it to help him become a sustainable NBA player.
