New Orleans Pelicans compete the southwest Division of the NBA's Western Conference and have been since 2002.
New Orleans Pelicans . The Pelicans compete in the National Basketball Association ( NBA ) as a member club of the league 's Western Conference Southwest Division . Due to the damage caused by Hurricane Katrina in 2005 , the franchise temporarily relocated to Oklahoma City , where they spent two seasons officially known as the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets . The team returned to New Orleans full-time for the 2007 -- 08 season . On January 24 , 2013 , the franchise announced it would rename itself the Pelicans , effective after the conclusion of the 2012 -- 13 season . The Charlotte Hornets name , history and records from 1988 to 2002 were returned to its original city to be used by the then -- Charlotte Bobcats franchise , which subsequently became the Charlotte Hornets , starting May 20 , 2014 .