Saints owner insists she will not sell Pelicans

New Orleans Saints owner Gayle Benson insists the New Orleans Pelicans will not be relocating in the near future.

The discussion of the whether the Pelicans will remain in New Orleans long term is not new. It has come up even more lately with Anthony Davis seemingly destined to play for another franchise next year, which results in questions about the viability of an NBA franchise in New Orleans without a star of his caliber.

On Monday, Benson, who owns both the Saints and Pelicans, quashed rumors of the Pelicans being on their way out of town.

“There’s no way that I’m going to sell that team. Ever. I value the Pelicans as much as I do the Saints.” — Owner Gayle Benson on reports that the Pelicans are a candidate to move to Seattle or another market in the future.

— Jeff Duncan (@JeffDuncan_) March 25, 2019

According to ESPN, the Pelicans rank 25th in the NBA in home attendance this season with an average of 15,971 per game. That’s down from 16,437 last season. If Davis is traded during the off-season, that figure would likely drop next season.

The Pelicans, which are in search of a new general manager, are a team that certainly needs direction going forward after firing general manager Dell Demps. His replacement could have a big impact on the future location of the team.