2017–18 New Orleans Pelicans season
The 2017–18 New Orleans Pelicans season was the 16th season of the New Orleans Pelicans franchise in the National Basketball Association. The Pelicans were coached by Alvin Gentry in his third year as head coach. They played their home games at the Smoothie King Center as members of the Western Conference's Southwest Division.
The team's second-leading scorer, DeMarcus Cousins, suffered a season-ending Achilles tendon injury during his subsequent final game as a Pelican on January 26, 2018, and missed the remainder of the season. Despite losing Cousins, the Pelicans clinched their first playoff berth since 2015 with a win over the Los Angeles Clippers on April 9, 2018. They finished the season 48–34 to finish in second place in the Southwest Division.
In the Playoffs, the Pelicans faced off against the third-seeded Portland Trail Blazers in the First Round. On April 14, 2018, the Pelicans won the first game in the First Round playoff series which marked the franchise's first playoff game win since the 2011 playoffs' First Round series against the Los Angeles Lakers. On April 21, the Pelicans completed the playoff series sweep over the Trail Blazers, marking the franchise's first series win since 2008. It also marked the first playoff series sweep in franchise history, and the first time that a team seeded sixth or lower had swept a First Round series since the NBA had expanded the First Round to a best-of-seven series. They advanced to the Conference Semifinals to face the second-seeded and eventual NBA champion Golden State Warriors, the team that swept them in the First Round of the 2015 playoffs. The Pelicans lost the series in five games and were eliminated from the playoffs.
As of 2019, this marked the last time the Pelicans made the playoffs.
Draft
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | College / Club |
| 2 | 31 | Frank Jackson | PG | United States | Duke |
Prior to the NBA draft, the Pelicans had only one second round pick, having traded their first round pick, rookie Buddy Hield, Tyreke Evans, Langston Galloway, and the Philadelphia 76ers' original second round pick to the Sacramento Kings in a blockbuster trade for star center DeMarcus Cousins and Omri Casspi. On June 21, 2017, however, the Pelicans acquired the Washington Wizards' second round pick in exchange for guard Tim Frazier. As a result, the Pelicans entered draft night with two second round and no first round picks. On the night of the draft, the Pelicans traded away their second round pick and cash considerations to the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for the Hornets' second round pick. With that pick, the Pelicans selected Duke point guard Frank Jackson. With the No. 52 overall pick, the Pelicans selected Xavier point guard Edmond Sumner and traded him to the Indiana Pacers for cash considerations.
Roster
Standings
Division
Conference
Game log
Preseason
Regular season
Playoffs
Player statistics
Regular season
Transactions
Trades
Free agency
Re-signed
Additions
Subtractions
Awards, records and milestones
Awards
| Player | Award | Date awarded | Ref. |
| DeMarcus Cousins | Western Conference Player of the Week | October 30, 2017 | |
| Anthony Davis | Western Conference Player of the Week | November 27, 2017 | |
| Anthony Davis | NBA All-Star starter | January 18, 2018 | |
| DeMarcus Cousins | NBA All-Star starter | January 18, 2018 | |
| Anthony Davis | Western Conference Player of the Month | March 1, 2018 | |
| Anthony Davis | Western Conference Player of the Week | March 5, 2018 | |
| Anthony Davis | Western Conference Player of the Month | April 12, 2018 | |
| Anthony Davis | All-Defensive First Team | May 23, 2018 | |
| Jrue Holiday | All-Defensive First Team | May 23, 2018 | |
| Anthony Davis | All-NBA First Team | May 24, 2018 | |
| Anthony Davis | NBA blocks leader | June 17, 2018 |
Records
Season
- Anthony Davis set franchise records in:
- * Most blocks in a game
- ** 10 in a loss against the Utah Jazz on March 11, 2018
- * Most blocks in a half
- ** 6 – tied his own franchise mark on the same day.
- * Field goals in a season
- * Points in a season
- * Points per game
- DeMarcus Cousins set a franchise record in:
- * Defensive rebound percentage in a season
- Rajon Rondo set franchise records in:
- * Most assists in a game
- ** 25 in a win against the Brooklyn Nets on December 27, 2017.
- * Most assists in a quarter
- ** 9 in a win against the Detroit Pistons on January 8, 2018, tying a franchise record.
Playoffs
- Anthony Davis set a franchise record in:
- * Most points in a playoff game
- ** 47 in Game 4 against the Portland Trail Blazers.
- Rajon Rondo tied a franchise record in:
- * Most assists in a playoff game
- ** 17 in Game 1 against the Portland Trail Blazers. Tied the record with Chris Paul.
Milestones
- On November 22, 2017, Anthony Davis reached 7,938 career points, moving him to second in points scored in franchise history after passing Chris Paul.
- On January 18, 2018, both Davis and DeMarcus Cousins were selected as NBA All-Star starters, which marked the first time since 2009 that multiple New Orleans players have been selected to the All-Star game. It was also the first time in franchise history that multiple players have started the All-Star game.
- On January 28, 2018, Davis reached 3,857 career rebounds, giving him the all-time franchise high in rebounds after passing David West.
- On February 2, 2018, Davis passed David West in points scored, giving him the all-time franchise high with 8,702.
- The Pelicans finished second in the Southwest Division, which was the highest since the 2007–08 season.
- The Pelicans finished first in the league in:
- * Total minutes played in a season
- * Minutes played per game
Playoffs
- The Pelicans clinched their first playoff berth since 2015.
- On April 14, 2018, the Pelicans won the first game in the First Round playoff series which marked the franchise's first playoff game win since the 2011 NBA playoffs.
- On April 21, 2018, the Pelicans completed the playoff series sweep over the Portland Trail Blazers, marking the franchise's first series win since 2008. It was also the first playoff series sweep in franchise history, and the first time that a team seeded sixth or lower had swept a First Round series since the NBA had expanded the First Round to a best-of-seven series.