New Orleans Pelicans fans have not taken Bill Simmons‘ latest take on the Crescent City lightly.
On an episode of “The Bill Simmons Podcast” published on July 23, Simmons suggested it is time for the NBA to give up on the city of New Orleans and relocate the Pelicans.
The topic came up while Simmons discussed the possibility of NBA expansion with fellow NBA reporter Zach Lowe.
“Well, there’s some situations where there are some franchises that could, maybe, move to a different city and be more successful,” Simmons said. “That’s the other piece of this. Specifically, New Orleans.
“And I don’t mean to start panic on New Orleans’ basketball. I’m also not sure if there’s enough of a fanbase in place to even care that much, but the Smoothie King Center lease ends in, I think, 2029.”
The Pelicans’ lease with the arena is set to end in June 2029.
“This is an experiment that has not worked for 50-plus years in New Orleans with professional basketball,” he said.
The New Orleans Jazz played in the city from 1974 to 1979 before moving to Utah. New Orleans did not have another NBA team until 2002 when the Hornets moved from Charlotte.
“Like, if you and I owned a team and they asked us what we thought and I’m like ‘Well, we definitely have enough players to go to 32 teams,'” Simmons said. “That doesn’t mean we should.”
Simmons suggested Seattle, Las Vegas, Mexico City and Nashville as potential cities the NBA could move the Pelicans to.
“I look at a situation like New Orleans, and I don’t know what that time is worth in its current state,” Simmons said. “I don’t know what it’s worth playing in the Smoothie King. Playing in a market that has clearly not responded to basketball like these other markets. And it’s like if someone just bought them and moved them to Seattle, paid everybody’s relocation fees and didn’t have to split up everyone’s media rights, that seems like where this is headed. I think there’s some, and I’m just going to say it, I think there’s some buzz starting that way that this New Orleans thing may be is the situation.”
Fan base fact check
Pelicans fans were highly upset at the clip of Simmons’ comments posted on X, which has over 142,000 views as of Friday morning. Among those upset are the hosts of the “Pro Pels Talk” podcast.
“Man, —- Bill Simmons, and there’s just no other way to put it,” Jarrett Reed, “Pro Pels Talk” co-host said. “New Orleans is always like in the top 5 or top 10 in viewership of NBA basketball.
According to a BasketballNews.com report in 2022, New Orleans was the city with the highest NBA viewership. In 2019, former ESPN reporter Alex Kennedy reported New Orleans ranked third in highest NBA viewership.
Here are ESPN and ABC’s top 10 highest-rated local markets for the 2018-19 regular season, according to the NBA:
1. Norfolk
2. Oklahoma City
3. New Orleans
4. Memphis
5. Birmingham
6. San Francisco
7. Raleigh-Durham
8. Richmond
9. Houston
10. Los Angeles
A LOT of surprises!
— Alex Kennedy (@AlexKennedyNBA) April 12, 2019
“You don’t think those people don’t want to go watch it in person?” Reed asked. “They just choose to watch the good stuff on TV. Why would I leave the confines of my own home, where I can just watch it on my 55-to-75 inch TV, to go watch some —— in person?”
New Orleans finished the 2024-25 season with a 21-61 record and finished No. 24 in the league with an average attendance of 17,301 fans per home game. Star forward Zion Williamson played 12 home games, and 30 games total, in the season.
In the Pelicans’ last playoff game on April 29, 2024, the Smoothie King Center hosted 18,487 fans.
“I don’t think very highly of the franchise because I don’t think ownership cares about winning,” Justin Napoli of “Pro Pels Talk” posted on X. “But there is a very dedicated fan base if you put a winning product out there.”
I don’t think very highly of the franchise, because I don’t think ownership cares about winning.
But there is a very dedicated fan base if you put a winning product out there.
— Justin (@ProPelsTalk) July 23, 2025