INDIANAPOLIS – New Orleans’ roster is so depleted due to injuries that one of the 10 “players” on the court during Thursday’s shootaround was a man who has not appeared in an NBA game since April 19, 2000. No, former Atlanta Hawks and Seattle SuperSonics shooting guard Fred Vinson won’t be making a comeback tonight vs. the Indiana Pacers after a 16-year hiatus from the league, but the New Orleans assistant coach was needed this morning for the Pelicans to be able to simulate 5-on-5 play. Only nine Pelicans players were available to participate.
“He can shoot,” Pelicans forward Luke Babbitt assessed of Vinson, a Georgia Tech standout in the early 1990s.