Derik Queen continues to impress dropping a career-high 26 points against the Trail Blazers
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Another milestone in the young career of a former Maryland Terrapin Derik Queen, he scored a career-high 26 points in a 125-117 loss against the Portland Trail Blazers Wednesday night at the Smoothie King Center.
Queen shot 12-of-18 from the field and shot 2-of-3 from the free-throw line. He also grabbed seven rebounds and dished out four assists.
A career night for Derik Queen:
— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) November 13, 2025
26 PTS (12/18 FG)
7 REB
4 AST pic.twitter.com/yJJnhtrqFT
Queen is averaging 14.8 points, 6.6 rebounds and 4.4 assists over the past five games for New Orleans.
Here is the stat line for Queen's past four-games:
Nov. 10th @ Phoenix- 24 minutes: 12 points, six rebounds, one assist, 5-of-10 fg shooting, and two steals
Nov. 8th @ San Antonio- 24 minutes: 13 points, five rebounds, eight assists, and two blocks
Nov. 5th @ Dallas- 25 minutes: 11 points, seven rebounds, two assists, 5-of-7 at the free throw line, and three steals.
Nov. 4th vs. Charlotte- 17 minutes: 12 points, eight rebounds, seven assists, 5-of-7 fg shooting, four steals, and a plus-13 rating when on the floor.
Although the Pelicans are off to a tough start in their 2025 regular season, sitting at 2-9 and 15th in the Western Conference. They continue to receive steady production from their first-round 6"9 center.
It's impressive what Queen has done already, only 11 games into his NBA career. New Orleans Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations, Joe Dumars, received a lot of questions and criticism when he traded the No. 23 overall pick and a future unprotected 2026 first-round pick to the Atlanta Hawks in exchange for the No.13 overall pick to draft Queen.
Queen is already making those people eat their words. He plays with a steady and veteran-like presence on the floor. In the modern NBA, where it's a blessing to have a stretch big on your team, Queen excels even that label. He handles the ball like a guard, bringing it up the court and pushing it in on fast breaks. His handle allows him to create separation in the high and low post, posing a threat as a scorer and distributor to his teammates. While also using good footwork to utilize post moves to finish with a nice touch at the rack.
Defensively, he plays with the right energy, staying engaged and active, which allows him to grab defensive rebounds, contest shots, and disrupt the passing lanes to push the ball in the other direction.
With leading stars Zion Williamson (Hamstring), Dejounte Murray (Achilles recovery), and Jordan Poole (Quad strain) all missing time, Queen has stepped up big-time, taking on a bigger responsibility despite the rookie tag and the losing outcomes.
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Jaden's sports journalism career began at the College of Southern Maryland from 2022-2023, where he was brought in to cover baseball, softball, basketball, soccer, and volleyball at CSM. In late 2023, he began interning at the University of Maryland Athletics Department as a contributing writer to help develop feature stories and game recaps. He also creates his own sports media content on professional Washington teams with LegacyMaker Sports Network.