Pelicans introduce 2025 Draft Picks Jeremiah Fears, Derik Queen and Micah Peavy

Pelicans introduce 2025 Draft Picks Jeremiah Fears, Derik Queen and Micah Peavy

uh thank you guys very much for being here this morning we are extremely happy to uh introduce uh the three newest members of the Pelicans uh Michael Peaveey Derek Queen Jeremiah Fierce um you know we were just talking in my office there and and I said to those guys I said you know when you hear your name called in the draft um that organization is making a statement about who they think you are and what I said to those guys is we think that you guys represent everything that we are here and that’s why you hear your name called by certain teams and so uh we think these guys are all about winning we think these guys are professional we think these are high character guys uh we think these guys we’re going to be proud of these guys i think the city of New Orleans is going to be proud of these guys um we don’t want just basketball players we want good people in the building and we think all three of these young men are really good people and um besides that they are fierce competitors uh we were just going over the schedule and talking about matchups and all of this already so we got fierce competitors here we got high character people uh we got guys who are going to make this city proud so uh with that I’ll turn it over uh to any of you guys who have questions but we’re super proud to have these guys here
yeah Joe right here uh Will Gillery with the Athletic um you talked about you know how these picks are going to lay the foundation for what you want this team to look like going into the future uh but from a basketball point how do you kind of see them fitting into your vision uh for what you want this team to be
so we just want guys who are smart tough competitive guys uh with basketball IQs that’s what every one of these guys have they have great basketball IQs they’re competitive they play to win uh that’s who we are that’s that’s the the profile of who we want all the players to be here at the Pelicans and so from that standpoint when you draft guys and they have those qualities uh they’ll figure out how to play with other guys that’s what high IQ is you don’t have to tell high IQ guys how to play with somebody else that that’s why they’re high IQ guys cuz they know how to do that let’s pick um what just for the three players what have these first few days been like for you all and has the reality set in that you’re in the NBA now good okay uh man it’s been super dope um like he said it’s it’s no better feeling to hear your name called and um finally getting down here meet the people meet your new family um and they just welcome all of us with open arms and we all super excited we all ready to get to work like he said we was talking about opponents and matchups so we ready
uh yeah piggy back off what he said u this is a dream come true um to be able to play for the New Orleans Pelicans uh I thank this whole organization for taking a chance on us and yeah like you said the uh we can’t wait to play in summer league and show the fans what we got yeah um definitely super excited uh it definitely hit me when I got down here seeing everybody and um meeting my new family uh just super excited and we all like we all said ready for summer league ready to compete uh my name is Fletcher i’m with the NBC affiliate here at WDSU i have two questions maybe first for the players and then for Joe um what were your interactions like for you three leading up to the draft did you get a sense that the Pelicans liked you and and Joe and the staff liked you how were your interactions with this organization before the draft and did you feel like this may be the spot that you were going uh me I I w I really wasn’t sure where I was going to end up at but I’m glad it all worked out cuz this this is one of my favorite spots and I definitely wanted to end end up here and then um it was just like a lot of nerve when it was going on and then I just kept bugging my agent and then it like I said it just all worked out man it was it was super dope um I remember my workout i came down here and just from my personal experience I thought I did really well during the workout seemed like they were kind of excited a little bit and I was excited as well so um like Derek said it all worked out for for the better um I’m excited to be down here uh got to meet some of some of my guys and man it’s going to be super fun we going to bring a lot to New Orleans and it’s going to be a show
uh yeah um I had a really good workout here i saw the type of guys uh this organization likes to bring um defensive minded guys so yeah I I thought this could be a place where I I could succeed at so I’m just I’m just glad they took a chance on me a followup for Joe um your draft has made a lot of headlines and people have had a lot of opinions on it unapologetically you said we’re going to be very aggressive doing what we’re doing here do you use that maybe some of the naysayers as fuel or a chip on your shoulder or is it just white noise to you
i’ve been doing this way too long to give credence to naysayers i will say this though um we’re going to chart our own path here like we’re not going to go by anyone else’s playbook and so uh these are the guys that we really really wanted as Pelicans uh and we’re super super happy to have them here but make no mistake we’re going to chart our own path here and we’re not playing by anybody else’s book derek I I just got to know what went into you updating your LinkedIn profile immediately after getting drafted so uh I actually I don’t know if I should say this but I actually don’t run it so so so so my team helps me helps me run it and then they updated it right after so and then it kind it kind of blew up so I’m glad I did it um I got a question for Jeremiah um spoke to people from Chicago about your kind of the way you brought came up in basketball can you talk about you know you have family here can you talk about or describe uh the the role of sounds like your dad was on the court with you like helped to improve your ball handling and your your brothers can you describe the impact that your family had um my family played a big role in my success um my mom been there since day one just somebody that you that you would call like your number one supporter she always reaches out before the game after the game make sure I’m good um she calls me before and after every game sometimes you might feel like it’s too much uh the way she calls me but I mean it’s it’s your mother at the end of the day and you only get one so you should cherish every moment like that my dad played a huge role in my success as well um he used to get out there and play with us a little bit uh right after we would get done with a training session he kind of taught me everything I know about the game of basketball and he’s one of the reasons I fell in love with the game so um gave him a lot of credit he wouldn’t lace up now cuz he he kind of know what’s up but he definitely helped um he helped with my success my older brother as well somebody that was my role model I could look up to and try to be like um as I continue to got older and um I give him a lot of love and support as well and uh hopefully he’ll be here next year on the same stage I am yeah for uh Jeremiah and Derek you guys there’s obviously going to be a lot of talk about you guys coming in together as first round picks how much have y’all kind of talked about what y’all can do to kind of complement each other on the floor and bring the best out of each other i’ll start um played against him a lot in high school unfortunately he used to used to beat me but I mean it it’s it all worked out for the better um I watched him a lot in college as well i just feel like he’ll be a a great piece for not only me but for everybody in this organization he brings a lot to the table IQ-wise a big that can do it all shoot pass move his feet really high IQ um and like I said just playing against him I kind of learned a lot watching film about him as well so he’ll be a great piece for not only me like I said but for everybody as well
yeah uh I definitely feel like we us matter of fact all three of us going to be great pieces uh I used to watch Fields highlights and uh when they had games I was like “This dude nice.” And I played against him preseason i was like I I didn’t know who he was and he grew on me and he really good basketball player all three of us really good basketball players so us being um here I feel like we can bring a lot to the table we all have different things uh I mean definitely have some similarities but mostly different things to bring to the team and and help the team win have you all heard from any other veteran members of the team have you texted them have they texted you have you had any interactions with the current roster so far
yeah uh a few of them like like like four of my teammates texting me
uh Derek uh back here John Sakaloff with WGNO TV is there anyone specifically that you model your game after
uh not necessarily like I just try to do do what I do best uh I take pieces like I be trying to like pass like your kids i mean if you say if I model my game after that then I try to pass like him but everything else I try to do on my own or or be my own person
and uh for Joe is there is there anyone you know when you watch obviously you’re very high on on Derek you know making the trade to go up and get him i is is there any you know player that you can kind of compare him to and shades of anyone else that you kind of see when you watched his tape you know when you’re doing this you’re not really trying to compare to someone else you see the skill sets that each one of these young guys have and what you try to figure out is can that fit the style of play that we want to play and so I’ll go back to this again and say this these are three high IQ basketball players these are three tough guys these are three competitors and all three of them have impacted winning that’s really what I’m looking at like to compare it to someone else maybe a little bit you look at that but that’s not the primary thing you do you want to make sure that these are the guys that going to help you win here in New Orleans this question is for Derek right here a lot of criticism about the trade does that give you some even extra motivation just hearing people talk about the trade
uh yes definitely uh cuz I mean I’m I’m going say here I don’t think nobody in in that class ever going to be better than me so I uh I block all the noise out uh and then he got a lot of faith in me uh most of those guys I beat on in high school so it don’t it don’t really it don’t really matter but just got to continue i know the NBA is a whole different level so just got to continue getting better don’t get too biged don’t get too low it just and and just just beat on them next year when they when they come when they come in and and and make Joe look like a genius right here terry Kimell New Orleans Pelicans on Sports Illustrated uh for the players before this draft process how familiar are you with the Pelicans organization either some players on the current roster or just the city and of New Orleans in general man watching a lot of basketball and just kind of got to see them last year um I know they struggled a little bit but sound like when I talked to them they had big plans on turning things around and they want to be a culture that’s remembered as winning so they brought in us three guys to kind of come help and kind of shape the new culture yeah being from Texas so I’m I’m real familiar familiar with this city um I’ve played a lot of tournaments here um and just watching guys like Herb Jones guys who impact winning guys who play uh really good defense so I I’ve watched a lot of their games a lot of the a lot of the film and so yeah um I really like this city i really like this organization yeah uh I like uh I like what they doing here three years ago when they made that play playoffs run uh I seen the intensity that Coach Willie Green had them doing uh I forgot who they played i think they played uh Grizzlies or OKC in the in the first round it was I think they went to game six or seven then after that just after that I just continue watching them how how they play with grit um I’m I’m I’m fan of some players on that team so I’m enjoyed so I’m about to enjoy playing with them next year
yeah micah uh you’re kind of an example of a new college prospect guys who are played at multiple schools under different coaches how much do you think that experience is going to help you coming into the NBA
um it’s helped me a lot i feel like it’s helped me a lot um playing five years in college been able to grow my game um playing multiple roles uh and throughout college so I think just at this level I’m I’m I’m going to be able to play whatever role this this coaching staff has me playing um I’m ready to impact winning at a high level right away derek I’m curious how much that your time with Monte Vidre helped you prepare for the NBA because you played with a lot of good players on that team
yeah um just like you said playing with a lot of good players i got there in my 10th grade so I played with Dariq and Feno two NBA players as um that they that they taught me a lot in high school uh uh Malik and Dylan probably going to be on that way and like guys that I had to play behind and teach me a lot my 11th grade year basically everybody from my senior year made it nobody from my 11th grade year made it so just playing with those guys every day playing with guys that was probably better than me at the time more experience taught me a lot and then Coach Bole him coaching all these NBA players got me uh basically got me ready for uh for this opportunity in now and Joe could you talk about uh over here it’s been reported that Hunter Dickinson Chase Hunter have both been signed uh can you talk about either of those players i don’t know if I can or not yet um can we say anything about that yet uh yeah both of those guys will um be um with uh with our summer league team um and so we’re really happy to have both of those guys they uh they both came in worked out for us during the um uh draft process and um they were both really really good and we thought they would be great for our summer league team braxton Brown Fox 8 uh Derek how much are you looking forward to playing alongside a player like Zion Williamson uh I can learn a lot from him uh I’m excited to throw him some lobs uh get him open create some opportunities for him even him creating some opportunities for me uh learning from him and um just ready to sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh share the court and just just watch greatness
and Jeremiah how how much do you look forward to like maybe what you can learn from a player like DeJonte Murray
um I can definitely learn a lot from Dejante he’s been been around the league for a while so I know he got a lot of experience and a lot of different things he could kind of teach me and help me to evolve my game as well so just ask him questions kind of pick his brain um and just try to learn as much as I can from him to add to my game as well

New Orleans Pelicans Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations Joe Dumars joined the team’s 2025 NBA Draft selections, Oklahoma guard Jeremiah Fears, Maryland forward-center Derik Queen, and forward Micah Peavy, at an introductory press conference on Saturday, June 28.
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New Orleans Pelicans Roster
———————————————-
Jose Alvarado #15 Guard
Brandon Boston #11 Guard
Keion Brooks Jr. #0 Forward *
Bruce Brown Guard/Forward
Jamal Cain #8 Forward *
Lester Quiñones Guard*
Jordan Hawkins #24 Guard
Herb Jones #2 Guard/Forward
Karlo Matković #17 Forward/Center
CJ McCollum #3 Guard
Yves Missi #21 Center
Trey Murphy III #25 Forward
Dejounte Murray #5 Guard
Kelly Olynyk #13 Forward/Center
Antonio Reeves #12 Guard
Jeremiah Robinson-Earl #50 Forward/Center
Zion Williamson #1 Forward
* = two-way

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