Less than a year ago, Brandon Ingram’s 2018-19 season ended early due to blood clots in his right arm, a condition some speculated might jeopardize his NBA career. That harrowing episode was one of the first things Ingram thought of Thursday night, when he learned he’d been named a Western Conference All-Star for the first time.

“My initial reaction was giving all the praise to the man above, thanking him for the health I have now, recovering from surgery and being able to be out here with my teammates and play basketball every single day,” Ingram said after Friday’s morning shootaround, ahead of a key home game against Memphis. “That’s what I’m most happy about. It’s another blessing (to become an All-Star).”

While still a member of the Los Angeles Lakers, Ingram underwent March 16 surgery on his right arm. He was traded to New Orleans in June, then spent a portion of the offseason rehabilitating and getting ready for Pelicans fall training camp. He hit the ground running with his new club, including scoring a career-best 40 points in just his seventh New Orleans game (he later had a 49-point game vs. Utah on Jan. 16). The fourth-year pro has improved every season of his career, now averaging 25.0 points per game, which resulted in the Pelicans having at least one All-Star representative for a seventh straight season.

“That’s really cool,” guard Jrue Holiday said of Ingram reaching All-Star status. “Just from experience, it’s an experience you can’t really put into words. To have that title under your belt, it kind of solidifies, ‘I’m supposed to be here and I’m good at what I do.’ Super happy and excited for him.”

Holiday, who was an Eastern Conference All-Star in ’13 – months before being traded to New Orleans himself – said that the Pelicans knew Ingram was a special talent immediately in the fall, when players began voluntary workouts at the team’s practice facility.

“You could tell from the beginning,” Holiday said. “You kind of saw signs there. He was always tough to guard, but here, once we really started getting to play with him, (you saw) he can do everything. He’s what, 6-10? He has an eight-foot wingspan, he’s tall enough to see over guys to make big plays and big passes. For me, it was fairly early to see how good he was.”

Ingram gave credit Friday to the New Orleans coaching staff for putting him in position to make another major jump as a player. The Pelicans play the sixth-fastest pace in the NBA, a style which seems conducive to Ingram’s strengths.

“It’s a lot of freedom,” Ingram described. “Freedom can be good and bad. With this freedom, I just have to take advantage of becoming better and better every single day. I’ve been able to showcase that on the floor.”

Holiday: “Some of it is the system. Some of it is being able to play with guys who want to see each other succeed. We could see how good B.I. was coming in and we just have to let him go. There were times where I literally throw him the ball and say, get us a bucket, and he’d get us a bucket.”

Other notes from Friday’s shootaround:

Ingram on finding out he was an All-Star last night, which realistically was out of the bag once Shams Charania tweeted the news prior to Thursday’s official announcement on TNT: “I got a lot of hints that I didn’t notice. (David Griffin) told me to come back to the gym at 6 o’clock. It was special to have one of my teammates here (Lonzo Ball) while we were working out. Him being with me to try to get better, and keep my confidence up every single day. That was special. For the trainers and everyone else to be here, it was special.” …

Holiday, after being asked about the Pelicans’ role as a team in Ingram’s All-Star honor: “He did that. He carried the team and put us on his back, made big shots, big plays, game-winners. As much credit as we’d like to take, he’s a really good player. To be so consistent and for so long, that’s why he’s an All-Star. And hopefully many more to come. He’s a really good player who can do everything.” …

Ingram, summarizing the All-Star selection:  “It’s very significant. Of course with the standards of mine and the people around me, there are bigger and bigger things than this, but I’m enjoying this moment right now and very thankful for this.”