Pelicans Scoop

12-Year NBA Veteran’s Honest Jeremiah Fears Statement After 2025 NBA Draft

Former NBA All-Star Jeff Teague made a candid statement about the New Orleans Pelicans' first draft pick
Will Despart|
Mar 21, 2025; Raleigh, NC, USA; Oklahoma Sooners guard Jeremiah Fears (0) reacts after scoring against Connecticut Huskies during the second half at Lenovo Center. Mandatory Credit: Zachary Taft-Imagn Images
Mar 21, 2025; Raleigh, NC, USA; Oklahoma Sooners guard Jeremiah Fears (0) reacts after scoring against Connecticut Huskies during the second half at Lenovo Center. Mandatory Credit: Zachary Taft-Imagn Images | Zachary Taft-Imagn Images

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New Orleans Pelicans

The New Orleans Pelicans haven't exactly gotten rave reviews about their performance in this week's NBA Draft, but one pick most fans and analysts agree they got right was selecting Oklahoma's Jeremiah Fears with the seventh overall pick.

Former NBA All-Star and 12-year veteran Jeff Teague is among those around the league who are high on Fears, but he also had very specific hopes about the role Fears will fulfill with the Pelicans during his rookie season. In a conversation on his popular "Club 520" regarding the Pelicans' draft class, Teague made his opinion known.

"I hope they let him play immediately," Teague said. "I hope they just hand him the ball."

Fears' elite ball handling skills made him a prospect that many analysts fell in love with, including ESPN's Stephen A. Smith, who deemed Fears the next coming of Kyrie Irving. Teague and his co-hosts agreed that it may have been a little much, but there is a bit of Irving's craftiness in Fears.

Fears averaged 17.1 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 4.1 assists in his lone season at Oklahoma, earning SEC All-Freshman team honors. Fears is the first Oklahoma player to be selected in the NBA Draft since Trae Young went third overall to the Atlanta Hawks in 2018. Despite this, Fears is also the fourth Sooner to be drafted in the top 10 since 2010.

New Orleans is hoping that Fears and No. 13 overall pick Derik Queen are a compatible fit, especially because the Pelicans parted ways with an unprotected 2026 pick to move up for Derik Queen.

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Will Despart
WILL DESPART

Will Despart is a Las Vegas-based sportswriter who covers the NBA for OnSI. He also writes for Ballislife and handles multiple beats for The Sporting Tribune, including the Las Vegas Aces and Las Vegas Raiders. His reporting has been featured in newspapers across the country through the Field Level Media news wire.

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