The question marks surrounding the future of Brandon Ingram in New Orleans continue to grow. Days after Ingram posted a cryptic message on his Instagram talking about the importance of recognizing your value, the Pelicans' star apparently did not attend the voluntary workouts that the team is having in California.
Zion Williamson once didn't show up to the Pelicans' voluntary workouts in the past few years, but he was dealing with an injury that kept him from playing. There has been no report that Ingram has an injury, so it's possible he's not showing up just because of the static between him and the team.
“Brandon Ingram finds himself in a situation where he is the only player that did not show up to these workouts except for Daniel Theis, who was reported that was not going to be there in the first place,” NBA reporter Shamit Dua said in a video.
This move could add more fuel to the fire after Ingram's Instagram post featuring a speaker talking about valuing yourself.
“You cannot stay in environments where people don’t know the true value of you,” the video says. “If you stay in environments where people don’t recognize the value of you, you will shrink your gift to the size of what they can stand.”
Brandon Ingram, Pelicans not close on contract extension
The reason Brandon Ingram is sending all of these cryptic messages and not going to workouts is probably because the New Orleans Pelicans are not offering him the extension that he wants. Ingram is looking for a deal around four years worth $208 million, but the Pelicans are more comfortable giving him less.
Ingram is averaging 23.1 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 5.2 assists over the past five seasons with the Pelicans, but he's also been inconsistent with his play. That was obvious during their first-round matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder, where head coach Willie Green sat him down the stretch of the fourth quarter.
Despite the noise, Pelicans general manager David Griffin said after the 2024 NBA Draft that Ingram wanted to be on the Pelicans and that they wanted him to be a part of the team in the future as well.
“Brandon wants to stay here,” Griffin said. “He believes in what we are building. That's meaningful to him. That's meaningful to his agent. At the same time, there is a financial reality that we all deal with. I think we're excited about Brandon. We know he's excited about us. Usually, those things yield good results one way or the other.”
It's uncertain how Ingram actually feels because he hasn't spoken about anything recently, but with his recent actions, there's a chance he's not a fan of how the Pelicans are handling the situation.
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