Jaron Pierre celebrated his 24th birthday Saturday, which included a cupcake in the tunnel before tip-off.
Then he went out and helped the New Orleans Pelicans celebrate their second straight Summer League victory in two days.
Pierre scored 16 points and the Pelicans led from start to finish in an 81-75 victory over the Phoenix Suns in Las Vegas.
Pierre, a New Orleans native and St. Augustine High graduate drafted in the second round in June’s draft, has steadily seen his minutes and productivity increase in Summer League play.
“From the first game to the second game to today, you can see him slowing it down and getting to his spots,” said Pelicans' Summer League head coach God Shammgod.
In Thursday’s opening loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves, he played just 12 minutes and finished with two points.
He scored 12 points in 25 minutes in Saturday’s win over the Charlotte Hornets. He was 0-for-7 on 3-pointers in the first two games, but finally knocked down some treys (3-for-10) Sunday. He also recorded three rebounds.
"In the first game, I was trying to find myself," Pierre said. "Today I felt like I found it. I put everything together for this one."
Malik Dia, a 6-foot-9 undrafted forward from Ole Miss, led the Pelicans with 18 points and eight rebounds in his best game in Las Vegas.
“It’s just being confident in who I am.” Dia said.” I love this game. I spend so much time on it and I’m just coming out here playing another game.”
Dia, who came off the bench, shot 6-of-12 from the floor.
“The thing with Malik is he’s a matchup nightmare," Shammgod said. "He is so gifted and can do so many things.”
Kobe Bufkin, who has been the Pelicans’ most productive offensive player in Summer League, chipped in 15 points. Bufkin, drafted by the Atlanta Hawks with the No. 15 overall pick in 2023, is averaging 21.3 points through the first three games. That includes a team-best 30 points in the opener.
New Orleans native Solomon Washington, a former Carver High standout who was named Louisiana’s Mr. Basketball in 2022, got his first action in Summer League play. The undrafted rookie missed his only shot attempt in his nine minutes of play, but recorded three rebounds and two assists. Melvin Council dished out a team-best four assists to go with his nine points.
Phoenix rookie forward Koa Peat, the younger brother of former Saints’ offensive lineman Andrus Peat, finished with 12 points and four rebounds for the Suns.
The Pelicans play their fourth game Wednesday against the Cleveland Cavaliers.