NEW ORLEANS – The New Orleans Pelicans announced today that the team has acquired forward James Johnson, forward Wes Iwundu (ih-WON-doo) and a 2021 second-round draft pick from the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for guard JJ Redick and forward Nicolò Melli.
Johnson, 6-7, 240, has appeared in 29 games this season with the Mavericks, averaging 5.7 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.7 assists. Selected 16th overall out of Wake Forest in the 2009 NBA Draft, Johnson has appeared in 663 career regular season games with Chicago, Toronto, Sacramento, Memphis, Miami, Minnesota and Dallas, posting averages of 7.9 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 0.8 steals and 0.9 blocks in 20.5 minutes per contest.
Iwundu, 6-6, 195, has appeared in 23 games for Dallas this season, averaging 2.1 points and 1.9 rebounds. Selected 33rd overall out of Kansas State by Orlando in the 2017 NBA Draft, Iwundu has appeared in 205 career regular season games with the Magic and Mavericks, averaging 4.5 points, 2.4 rebounds and 1.0 assists.
Redick, 6-3, 200, has appeared in 31 games this season for New Orleans, averaging 8.7 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.3 assists. After originally signing as a free agent with New Orleans on July 15, 2019, Redick has appeared in 91 games for the Pelicans over the last two seasons, averaging 13.0 points while shooting .430 from three-point range, 2.2 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 23.7 minutes per game. The Duke University product has appeared in 927 career regular season games with Orlando, Milwaukee, LA Clippers, Philadelphia and New Orleans, holding career averages of 12.9 points while shooting .415 from three-point range, 2.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists.
Melli, 6-9, 236, joined the Pelicans ahead of the 2019-20 season after a 12-year professional career in Europe. In 82 career NBA games, the Italian native holds averages of 5.3 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.3 assists.
Johnson will wear #16 and Iwundu will wear #4 for New Orleans.
{Press release courtesy of the New Orleans Pelicans}