List of New Orleans Pelicans seasons explained

The New Orleans Pelicans are a professional basketball team based in New Orleans, Louisiana. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The franchise began play during the 2002–03 NBA season as the New Orleans Hornets following the relocation of the Charlotte Hornets, based in Charlotte, North Carolina. After three seasons in New Orleans, Hurricane Katrina forced the franchise to temporarily relocate to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, where they spent two seasons as the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets. The Hornets returned to New Orleans full-time for the 2007–08 season. The team changed its name to the New Orleans Pelicans at the conclusion of the 2012–13 season.

Led by All-Star Baron Davis, the New Orleans Hornets qualified for their first post-season appearance during the 2002–03 season. They lost to the Philadelphia 76ers in the first round. The team earned their first division title during the 2007–08 season, behind the play of All-Stars Chris Paul and David West. Finishing with a franchise-best record of 56 wins and 26 losses, the Hornets won the Southwest Division title over the defending champion San Antonio Spurs. They advanced to the conference semifinals, where they were defeated by the Spurs in seven games.

In 20 seasons, the Pelicans have compiled an overall record of 740–864 all-time. They have qualified the playoffs eight times, winning two series, and posted seven seasons of 41 wins or more.^[1]

Seasons

League champions	Conference champions	Division champions	Playoff berth	Play-in berth

Season	Team	League	Conference	Finish	Division	Finish	Wins	Losses	Win%	GB	Playoffs	Awards	Head Coach
New Orleans Hornets<														-- Please DO NOT change the HTML formatting in this banner header. Thank you. -->
2002–03	2002–03	NBA	Eastern	5th	Central	3rd	47	35	.573	3	Lost first round (76ers) 4–2		Paul Silas
2003–04	2003–04	NBA	Eastern	5th	Central	3rd	41	41	.500	20	Lost first round (Heat) 4–3	P.J. Brown (SPOR)	Tim Floyd
2004–05	2004–05	NBA	Western	15th	Southwest	5th	18	64	.220	41			Byron Scott
2005–06	2005–06	NBA	Western	10th	Southwest	4th	38	44	.463	25		Chris Paul (ROY)
2006–07	2006–07	NBA	Western	10th	Southwest	4th	39	43	.476	28
2007–08	2007–08	NBA	Western	2nd	Southwest	1st	56	26	.683	–	Won first round (Mavericks) 4–1 Lost conference semifinals (Spurs) 4–3	Byron Scott (COY)
2008–09	2008–09	NBA	Western	7th	Southwest	4th	49	33	.598	5	Lost first round (Nuggets) 4–1
2009–10	2009–10	NBA	Western	11th	Southwest	5th	37	45	.451	18			Byron Scott Jeff Bower
2010–11	2010–11	NBA	Western	7th	Southwest	3rd	46	36	.561	15	Lost first round (Lakers) 4–2		Monty Williams
2011–12	2011–12	NBA	Western	15th	Southwest	5th	21	45	.318	29
2012–13	2012–13	NBA	Western	14th	Southwest	5th	27	55		31
New Orleans Pelicans<														-- Please DO NOT change the HTML formatting in this banner header. Thank you. -->
2013–14	2013–14	NBA	Western	12th	Southwest	5th	34	48		28			Monty Williams
2014–15	2014–15	NBA	Western	8th	Southwest	5th	45	37		11	Lost first round (Warriors) 4–0		Monty Williams
2015–16	2015–16	NBA	Western	12th	Southwest	5th	30	52		37			Alvin Gentry
2016–17	2016–17	NBA	Western	10th	Southwest	4th	34	48		27		Anthony Davis (ASG MVP)
2017–18	2017–18	NBA	Western	6th	Southwest	2nd	48	34		17	Won first round (Trail Blazers) 4–0 Lost conference semifinals (Warriors) 4–1
2018–19	2018–19	NBA	Western	13th	Southwest	4th	33	49		20
2019–20	2019–20	NBA	Western	13th	Southwest	5th	30	42		14		Brandon Ingram (MIP)
2020–21	2020–21	NBA	Western	11th	Southwest	4th	31	41		11			Stan Van Gundy
2021–22	2021–22	NBA	Western	8th	Southwest	3rd	36	46		20	Lost first round (Suns) 4–2		Willie Green
2022–23	2022–23	NBA	Western	9th	Southwest	2nd	42	40		11
2023–24	2023–24	NBA	Western	8th	Southwest	2nd	49	33		1	Lost first round (Thunder) 4–0	CJ McCollum (JWKC)

All-time records

Statistic	Wins	Losses
All-time regular season record	831	937
All-time post-season record	22	37
All-time regular and post-season record	853	974

Note: statistics are correct as of April 29, 2024

Notes

Due to the catastrophic devastation brought by Hurricane Katrina upon the communities of southeastern Louisiana, the Hornets franchise temporarily relocated their base of operations to Oklahoma City in 2005–06 and 2006–07. During this time, the franchise was known as the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets.^[2]
Due to a lockout, the 2011–12 season did not start until December 25, 2011, and all 30 teams played a shortened 66-game regular season schedule.^[3]
Earned 8th seed after beating the Los Angeles Clippers in the NBA play-in tournament.^[4]
Fell to the 8th seed after losing to the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA play-in tournament..^[5]

Notes and References

Web site: New Orleans Pelicans franchise page. Basketball Reference.com. April 21, 2013.
https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/NOK/2006.html 2005–06 New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets season
Web site: NBPA History. National Basketball Player's Association. August 31, 2008. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20051025110641/http://nbpa.com/history.php. October 25, 2005.
Web site: Play-In Game: New Orleans Pelicans at Los Angeles Clippers Box Score, April 15, 2022. basketball-reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. May 18, 2023.
Web site: Play-In Game: Los Angeles Lakers at New Orleans Pelicans Box Score, April 16, 2024. basketball-reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. April 20, 2024.