After years of covering the New Orleans Pelicans, Andrew Lopez is now a part of the team.
Taking to X on Thursday, the former ESPN reporter announced that he’s joining the Pelicans as the team’s television sideline reporter. Lopez’s announcement coincides with the official unveiling of the Gulf Coast Sports & Entertainment Network, which comes by way of the Pelicans’ new partnership with Gray Media.
“Let’s dance. Beyond excited to join the Pelicans as the team’s new sideline reporter as well as do some more things with the brand new Gulf Coast Sports & Entertainment Network,” the New Orleans native wrote. “Amazing opportunity to come home and get things started.”
After initially covering sports for The Times-Picayune, Lopez was laid off in 2019 following the newspaper’s merger with The New Orleans Advocate. Not long after, ESPN hired him to cover the Pelicans, who had just selected Duke phenom Zion Williamson with the No. 1 overall pick of the 2019 NBA Draft.
While covering the ups and downs of the first four years of Williamson’s professional career, Lopez expanded his coverage across the NBA. Ahead of the 2023-24 NBA season, he relocated to San Antonio to cover another rookie phenom, Victor Wembanyama, before announcing that this past Monday would be his final day working at ESPN.
In returning to New Orleans, Lopez joins the new official television home of the Pelicans, which will broadcast 75 of the team’s 82 regular-season games for free over the air in affiliate markets in Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi. More information regarding the Gulf Coast Sports & Entertainment Network and its talent can be found on the Pelicans’ official website.
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.