The New Orleans Pelicans are attempting to pivot and head in a new direction after an awful season.
Part of their plan is to improve their coaching staff.
According to Pete Thamel, the Pelicans have hired Mike Hopkins as an assistant coach/head of player development.
Hopkins spent last season working for the Phoenix Suns and was the head coach of Washington for years after working as an assistant at Syracuse.
The New Orleans Pelicans have hired Mike Hopkins as an assistant coach/head of player development, per the team. Hopkins spent last season with the Phoenix Suns, worked as the head coach at Washington (2017-2024) and was a long-time assistant at Syracuse (1995-2017). pic.twitter.com/9XbU7r4KtN
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) August 5, 2025
Since Troy Weaver became Senior Vice President of the team in April, things have changed in New Orleans.
Weaver is clearly shaking things up and attempting to get the team on the right path.
This is good news because the path they were on last season was absolutely the wrong one.
The team suffered injury after injury and was never at 100 percent.
Much of that wasn’t their fault, but it still prevented them from climbing high in the Western Conference standings, and they didn’t even come close to the playoffs.
Things will be even tougher in the new year, even though the team should be healthier.
The West has become better, and the roster adjustments New Orleans made don’t promise victory.
Plus, the team has already been bitten by the injury bug, but hopefully it doesn’t get as bad this time.
Hopkins brings years of experience and should help the young players in the lineup get better.
Hope isn’t completely lost for this team, but the Pelicans are ready for their rough times to be over and to turn a page and start a new chapter.
Can Hopkins help with that?
NEXT: Pelicans Receive Unflattering Grade For Offseason Moves