Brandon Ingram did not attend the team’s week-long voluntary minicamp in California last week, a source told The Athletic. Ingram and Daniel Theis were the only Pelicans players not to attend. The Pelicans had believed Ingram would attend, but he did not show up to the camp organized by his teammates.
Ingram wants a contract extension with the Pelicans, but the team isn’t in a position to offer him the maximum four-year, $207.8 million contract. The Pelicans already have Zion Williamson, Dejounte Murray and CJ McCollum on big contracts, and Trey Murphy is eligible to sign a rookie-scale extension.
The trade market for Ingram is also soft, with rival teams hesitant to make a deal in his desired price range. Ingram, represented by Jeff Schwartz and Jordan Gertler, will become an unrestricted free agent in 2025 if he doesn’t reach an extension.
New Orleans is prepared to go into the season with Ingram on the roster and see if he fits in the starting lineup alongside Williamson, Murray, Murphy and Herb Jones.
Despite not participating in minicamp, Ingram remains a highly-regarded figure within the franchise.
Ingram and the Pelicans quickly agreed to a five-season, $158 million rookie-scale extension in November 2020. Ingram did not have a player option for the fifth season of his contract, which became a talking point after the extension was first reported.
