New Orleans Pelicans Coach Could Pull Off Incredible Championship Feat This Summer

The former NBA champion and current Pelicans coach has a chance to win a basketball championship this summer.

Jan 7, 2023; Dallas, Texas, USA; New Orleans Pelicans player development coach and former NBA player Corey Brewer warms up with the Pelicans before the game between the Dallas Mavericks and the New Orleans Pelicans at the American Airlines Center. / Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Corey Brewer has been on the New Orleans Pelicans staff since 2020. The veteran forward retired the same year and signed on with the Pelicans as a Player Development Coach. When he isn't coaching up the Pelicans, Brewer plays in Ice Cube's Big3 League for the Bivouac team.

The former NBA champion is a co-captain on his BIG3 team with previous NBA high-flyer Gerald Green and his brother Garlon. Brewer leads the league in blocks and steals, averaging 18.4 points a game. This year's playoffs are being held close to his hometown of Portland, Tennesee. The small town is approximately 40 miles from Nashville, the site of this weekend's tournament.

At Portland High, he was a McDonald's All-American his senior year and led them to their only state tournament appearance in 2003. Brewer then went on to win two NCAA championships at the University of Florida before being drafted in the first round by the Minnesota Timberwolves.

He played 13 seasons in the NBA and won an NBA Finals as a member of the Dallas Mavericks. Since joining the Pelicans as a Player Development Coach, Brewer has worked closely with young players on the team like Zion Williamson, Herb Jones, and Trey Murphy III.

Coaching elite-level talent like that makes his coaching job that much easier.

"You can tell that he’s not satisfied with where he’s been or what he’s achieved. He approaches his career as if it’s just beginning, and that’s so refreshing", Brewer said about Williamson after his first year coaching Zion.

"He’s one of one. I’ve never seen anything like him. But the best part is that you know he’s not satisfied."

Brewer won't be satisfied unless his BIG3 team wins the championship this season. Bivouac finished at 7-1 during the regular season, the best record in the league. They face the No. 4 seed Tri-State and former NBA player Jason Richardson. Tri-State is coached by NBA legend and Hall-of-Famer Julius Irving.

The winner of Sunday's game moves on to the championship on August 18th in Boston. Brewer has been a player in the BIG3 league since 2022 under head coach Gary Payton. He is seeking his first championship in the BIG3.

Ice Cube's league is a three-on-three, half-court-style basketball format and has been a success since it debuted eight years ago. Former NBA players like Joe Johnson, Chauncey Billups, and Stephen Jackson have elevated the profile of the league, causing more and more retired NBA players to want to join.