New Orleans Pelicans rising sophomore forward Derik Queen has enjoyed his first full offseason as an NBA player by studying.

At Queen’s exit press conference, he told local media members that he planned to attend some NBA playoff games to learn what the atmosphere is like. In the first round, Queen was seen attending the Atlanta Hawks-New York Knicks series to watch his former teammate and current Knicks guard Jose Alvarado.

Now, Queen is at the NBA Finals as one of five NBA player correspondents.

Alvarado reunion

During his media duties, Queen interviewed Alvarado during a Knicks practice.

“What’s some advice that you could give me now that I’ve finished my rookie year?” Queen asked Alvarado before placing the microphone close to Alvarado’s face.

“Um,” Alvarado said, before pushing the microphone away. “Yo. Chill out, bro. Chill. Yo, stop, bro!”

The clip then cuts to Alvarado holding the microphone himself.

“Some advice I’d give you [is to] ‘Shut up and listen’,” Alvarado said to Queen.

“I was bad?” Queen asked Alvarado.

“Sometimes,” Alvarado responded. “You learn from the moments that you weren’t the kid who was trying to act like he knew it all.

“And just be yourself. You have an important year coming up. I tell you this all the time. So you better have a great summer, and I’m happy for you.”

Alvarado then flipped the script and asked Queen a question.

“What was your favorite moment between you and me in New Orleans?” Alvarado said.

“I made a bad play, and then you lifted my head up,” Queen said. “When we were in Miami, you and I went out to eat.”

“It was good vibes?” Alvarado asked.

“Yeah,” Queen said.

“Alright, I respect that,” Alvarado said before he shook Queen’s hand, laughed and thanked him for his time.

@PelicansNBA
rookie Derik Queen interviews his former teammate Jose Alvarado at
NBA Finals Game 2 Media Day.

Knicks (1-0) Spurs Game 2: Friday at 8:30pm/et on ABC 🏆 pic.twitter.com/vbSPsr34uT

— NBA (@NBA) June
4, 2026

Advice from KAT

He then asked Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns a question.

“What advice do you have for someone who’s similar to you?” Queen asked. “Like a big man with guard skills? As a rookie big who’s just trying to learn. What advice do you have for me?”

“I mean, you already are superbly talented,” Towns said. “I’ve seen it firsthand. I think, for me, it’d be more about locking into the film consistently. Never leave the gym, be infatuated with the work. I know it’s weird, but JB [Jalen Brunson] has it on his shirt, but the magic really is in the work. The real gift about experience is that you’ll find ways to accomplish the same goal and get the stats with using way less energy. And with that, that’s where experience really kicks in, and it’s a beauty.”

“You are already superbly talented, I’ve
seen it firsthand.” 🥹

High praise from KAT to rookie big Derik Queen, who asked him for
advice. pic.twitter.com/trI7yYCdr1

— NBA (@NBA) June
4, 2026

Queen is the player correspondent for Game 2. Caleb Wilson, a top-4 2026 NBA Draft prospect, was the player correspondent for Game 1.

Queen’s teammate and fellow Pelicans’ rising sophomore, Jeremiah Fears, will be the correspondent for Game 3.

AJ Dybantsa, widely projected to be the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, and Charlotte Hornets forward Kon Knueppel are also series-player correspondents.