They never played together on KU basketball. They’re Summer League teammates now
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- Melvin Council Jr. scored six points and had two assists in his Pelicans debut.
- Hunter Dickinson scored a game-high 21 points and made three 3-pointers.
- Council is on an Exhibit 10 deal aiming for Pelicans camp or a two-way spot.
Former University of Kansas men’s basketball guard Melvin Council Jr. scored six points in 20 minutes in his NBA summer basketball debut with the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday in Las Vegas.
Council, a 6-foot-4, 180-pound, 24-year-old native of Rochester, New York, hit 3 of 4 shots (0-for-1 from 3) in the Pelicans’ 95-91 Las Vegas summer league victory over the Charlotte Hornets. Council also had two assists to one turnover and a steal.
He posted the highest plus-minus of any player on the Pelicans squad. New Orleans outscored the Hornets by 16 points during the 20 minutes he was on the court.
Council is on an Exhibit 10 contract with New Orleans which allows him to play with the Pelicans during the Vegas summer league and attend training camp in hopes of making the roster or earning a two-way contract.
Council did not play in the Pelicans’ first game in Vegas on Thursday, a 105-92 loss to Minnesota. He came off the bench Saturday.
Council emerged as a fan-favorite during the 2025-26 season after transferring to KU from St. Bonaventure. He averaged 12.7 points, 5.1 assists and 5.0 rebounds for the Jayhawks.
Former KU center Hunter Dickinson, who has signed a two-way contract with the Pelicans for the second straight season, scored a game-high 21 points on 9-of-18 shooting.
The 7-foot-1, 255-pound, 25-year-old native of Alexandria, Virginia, put up six 3s, hitting three, which proved important in New Orleans rallying from an 18-point deficit. He had three rebounds, three assists and no turnovers while starting and playing 26 minutes.
Dickinson said after the game he’s put in countless hours in the gym in an attempt to become a threat from 3. Dickinson went 50-of-128 from 3 for 39.1% in 33 games for Birmingham of the G League a year ago.
“I work on that every day and I just went out there and executed,” Dickinson told NBATV after the game. “It’s all about the reps, and the reps build the confidence for me. It’s just going back on the practice field and shooting 1,000 shots every night. That’s where I get the confidence from.”
The New Orleans guards had confidence to fire the ball out to Dickinson from beyond the arc.
“I think in the second half they did a great job of making the big man collapse and then being able to kick it out. So I had a little bit extra space out there to shoot it,” Dickinson said.
New Orleans went winless in Vegas summer league action last summer.
“Obviously last year coming off of 0-5 over two weeks … we wanted to get out here and show we’re a new organization now. And I think we did that,” Dickinson said. “I think we made a statement out there today and we are just going to try to build off this for the next game.”
Former Kansas State guard Markquis Nowell joined Dickinson in the starting lineup for the Pelicans. He had four points on 1-of-4 shooting with six assists to no turnovers with two steals in 17 minutes.
White starts, scores 13: Former KU wing Tre White scored 13 points with four rebounds and four steals while starting and playing 29 minutes in the Miami Heat’s 93-88 loss to Orlando on Saturday in Vegas. The 6-foot-7 Dallas native was 3-of-9 from the field, including 3-of-6 from 3.
White scored 16 points and grabbed 10 rebounds while playing 24 minutes in Miami’s 119-86 victory over Milwaukee on Friday in the two teams’ opening game in Vegas.
Mayo in double figures: Former KU guard Zeko Mayo, who played in the G League last year, scored 11 points on 3-of-5 shooting (1-of-3 from 3) with three steals, two rebounds, no assists and one turnover in Atlanta’s 83-76 win over Brooklyn on Saturday in Vegas.
