DeAndre Liggins Joins the Injury-Plagued New Orleans Pelicans

DeAndre Liggins is joining the Pelicans.

DeAndre Liggins with the Dallas Mavericks. Photo by Austin Mcafee/CSM/REX/Shutterstock

The New Orleans Pelicans are adding shooting guard DeAndre Liggins to their roster according to ESPN‘s Adrian Wojnarowski. Liggins will first sign a 10-day deal with the Pelicans, who will then decide whether they will keep him on a long-term basis. In order to sign the guard, Pelicans are using an injury exception, awarded to them by the NBA.

The New Orleans Pelicans were set back by injury problems for the better part of the season, with their star forward Anthony Davis being in and out of the lineup. The team’s backcourt, however, is hurting the most with players like Solomon Hill, Frank Jackson, and Tony Allen sitting more on the sidelines than actually playing. The acquisition of Liggins, who was waived by the Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday, will bring depth to the Pelicans’ line-up and should make them better at defense. Also, Liggins is a quality 3-point shooter, which can be crucial if the team intends to make a playoff run. The Pelicans are currently just above .500 with a 20-19 record and sitting at the 8th spot in the Western Conference. They are one game behind the Portland Trail Blazers on the 7th and two games above the Los Angeles Clippers.

Considered a basketball journeyman, DeAndre Liggins first got the taste of NBA when the Orlando Magic took him 53rd overall in 2011 NBA Draft. He failed to make an impact in Orlando and was released after playing 17 games. In 2012 he signed with the Oklahoma City Thunder, having multiple assignments in the NBA Development League with the Tulsa 66ers. He then briefly played for the Miami Heat, before heading to Europe in 2014. In 2016 he joined the Cleveland Cavaliers and played 61 (19 as a starter) before being released once again. After a brief spell with the Dallas Mavericks, he joined the Bucks, for which he played 31 games, averaging 1.6 rebounds and 1.8 points per game.

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