Overview
- Multiple outlets reported that the Pelicans agreed to a fully guaranteed three-year, $55.5 million extension for Saddiq Bey that includes a trade kicker and keeps him under contract through the 2029–30 season.
- Bey produced career-best numbers in 2025–26 after missing the 2024–25 season with a torn ACL, averaging 17.7 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.5 assists while shooting 45.1 percent from the field and 36.7 percent from three.
- Spotrac data cited in coverage places New Orleans’s 2026–27 salary allocations at about $217.1 million, a figure that signals reduced midterm payroll flexibility for the franchise.
- The front office framed the extension as a performance-based commitment that secures a secondary scorer who finished behind only Zion Williamson and Trey Murphy III in team scoring last season.
- The trade kicker raises the cost of moving Bey and makes the deal a clearer bet on his continued recovery and development, a choice that could help the Pelicans chase a deeper Western Conference run but also limit roster moves.