The Pelicans have one of the most complete rosters in the league, are lead by one of the best young coaches in the game and are fresh off of taking the Suns to six games in a playoff series. Can New Orleans complete a Memphis-esque ascension and put it all together in a loaded Western Conference?
Fun fact: pelicans can fly. While they don’t fly very high upward, some pelican species can reach top speeds of 30 miles per hour. Based on their stocky build, I didn’t think they were capable of flying, but alas, I was wrong. I looked at it, and I doubted its ability to ascend.
The Pelicans that play professional basketball in New Orleans are the exact opposite…at least for some. One look at their roster could easily make one feel the exact opposite of doubt. It could catalyze fantasies of a deep playoff run that include highlight-reel jams from a slimmer Zion Willamson, lollipop-sweet jumpers from both CJ McCollum and Brandon Ingram as well as Jose Alvarado annoying the absolute crap out of your favorite team’s starting point guard.
After reading what you just read, you may think the potential optimism regarding Willie Green’s gang is far too high. You may be asking “didn’t they barely make the play-in tournament last season?” or saying something like “the Western Conference is way too good this year!”
And guess what? Both of those statements are correct, especially the second one. Out of the Suns, Grizzlies, Warriors, Mavericks, Nuggets, Timberwolves, Clippers and Pelicans – all really good teams — two of them will be in the play-in tournament (assuming that’s the top eight). We could have a year similar to 2007-08 or 2013-14 where the nine seed in the West wins 48 games.
So why is there reason to be high on the Pelicans in 2022-23? Why should you hop aboard the navy-and-gold bandwagon full of colorful necklaces and beignets before it’s too late? And how could you possibly pass up deep-fried pastries covered in powdered sugar?
In order to understand where the Pelicans’ uprising began, we must rewind to November 22, 2021, when the Timberwolves defeated the Pelicans 116-103 for New Orleans’ 16th loss in their first 19 games. It was the worst start in franchise history other than the 2004-05 Hornets beginning the season 1-18. To make matters worse, Williamson’s consistent absence from the team and his family’s alleged frustration with the Pelicans front office loomed like a dark cloud over the franchise.
Then, the Pelicans turned things around. On the court, Green made some adjustments, with the biggest one being starting rookie forward Herb Jones, who quickly established himself as one of the league’s best perimeter defenders. They traded for CJ McCollum at the trade deadline, who immediately alleviated some of the scoring burden off of Ingram. Also in the trade for McCollum was Larry Nance Jr, whose versatility on defense was incredibly helpful late in the season. Jaxson Hayes’ minutes deservedly increased dramatically after the All-Star break, and Alvarado came out of nowhere to become a player you love if he’s on your team but despise if he’s not. After the nightmare start, the Pelicans finished the season 33-30, won two play-in games and gave the Suns everything they could handle in the first round of the playoffs. That positive momentum seems to be rolling into 2022-23; just ask Nance.
“The vibes and mood around the team are nothing short of immaculate at this point,” Nance recently told NBA.com. For a guy that’d been stuck in a vicious cycle of bad situations since he entered the league in 2016 (post-Kobe/pre-LeBron Lakers, post-LeBron Cavs and the Blazers last season), this newfound sense of optimism and stability must feel extra-nice for Nance.
The best part about Nance’s positive vibe check? It has plenty of merit. Let’s put on our lab coats and examine the Pelicans to see why New Orleans could take flight this season.
When looking at the roster construction of really good teams in any sport, a common theme is a lack of weaknesses. Sure, most championship teams are exceptional in many facets of the game, but the teams that at the very least consistently contend for championships either have few holes or have ways to cover them up. Look at the 6-0 Philadelphia Eagles right now; they’re not necessarily incredible at everything, but they’re not bad at anything. There’s not one position group or aspect of the game you could point to right now and say “that’s a serious weakness”. Them not having any major holes to cover up allows them to diversify formations, run different types of plays and keep opponents on their toes; they can succeed in multiple different ways. The Pelicans can do the same thing.
Let’s start with the shot creators, the engines of the Pelicans offense in Ingram and McCollum. Defense is cool and all, but if you can’t score, you can’t win…how did Tom Thibodeau just appear out of thin air? And why is he giving me the death look? Can someone make a sound defensive rotation so he can stop glaring at me like this?
With Ingram and McCollum, the Pelicans have one of four perimeter tandems that averaged at least 22 points per game last season (KD-Kyrie, DeRozan-Lavine, Brown-Tatum). The most fun thing is that they each present different problems for defenses. Ingram is a mid-range monster who can shoot over almost any forward with a ludicrous 7’3” wingspan, can take you to the tin and sports a passable three-point shot. McCollum is ridiculously strong, can snake his way into open space with slick handles and can also knock down a ton of threes with high efficiency. Most teams would be lucky to have just one of those guys.
That’s a great start…how about we add a 27 point-per-game-on-60%-shooting-from-the-feld wrecking ball on steroids that can single-handedly destroy an interior defense? The Pelicans were without Zion Williamson for all of last season, and his return alone will be a force multiplier for their offense. His “gravity” – the amount of attention a player requires from a defense – in the painted area is not far out from the likes of prime Shaquille O’Neal and Giannis Antetokounmpo right now.
Williamson requires so much attention from a defense that the Pelicans will always have an advantage somewhere; either Williamson is on an island, or someone else is open. On the perimeter, Ingram, McCollum, Devonte Graham and Trey Murphy III are all respectable shooters from the outside. Heck, Jonas Valanciunas started shooting threes consistently for the first time in his career. Inside, Valanciunas is a mountain of a man, and Hayes is a major lob threat. In fact, take this play from 2021. Williamson is able to get downhill after hitting Nicolas Batum with a filthy behind-the-back. Watch how quickly the Clippers defense floods the paint, opening up an easy lob to Hayes. I’d recommend putting the video on half-speed in order to fully recognize the lightning-fast response from the Clippers and how it opens up a cupcake opportunity at the rim:
With Williamson’s return nearing as the preseason began, a lot of the talk around him was his slim figure. Losing a good chunk of weight could make one think his paint dominance will significantly decrease, but remember, he’s so much of an outlier from an athleticism/strength fusion standpoint that he could afford to lose weight while retaining a level of strength that’s still far above and beyond his peers.
Take this other play from 2021 as an example. Williamson is being guarded one-on-one by Richaun Holmes, which Zion appeared to be offended by as he proceeded to lower his shoulder into Holmes like Earl Campbell did to defenders back in the day:
Williamson puts his shoulder into Holmes when Holmes’ right foot is just inside the free throw line, and the Kings big man goes crashing into the basket padding while Williamson converts an easy two points. For context, Holmes is listed at a large 6’10”, 235 pounds; that wasn’t Facundo Campazzo that Willamson bulldozed over. What’s even crazier is that the distance from the free throw line to the baseline on a professional basketball court is 19 feet. The basket padding in the Golden 1 Center on that day was at least a couple of feet behind the baseline, and Holmes was still moving when he made impact with the basket, implying that he would’ve traveled even further if not for the hoop being in the way. Essentially, Holmes would’ve rocketed over seven yards backwards solely because of Williamson’s brute strength. Mike Alstott was definitely smiling somewhere.
During the preseason, Williamson showed no signs of lost strength. Despite an ankle tweak that put a slight damper on his opening exhibition contests, he looked like the menacing bulldozer that he was before he broke his foot.
Alright, the offense looks good. What about the defense? You can’t talk about the Pelicans defense without first mentioning Herb Jones. The 6’7” forward with a seven-foot wingspan burst onto the scene as a seeming Gary Payton disciple, putting on nightly defensive clinics that earned him a spot on the All-Rookie team. Jones is like Micah Parsons in that he seems like he’s everywhere at once, and that he can not only succeed himself, but can also cover his teammates’ mistakes.
One of the more fascinating parts about Jones’ defensive genius is his anticipation. I am in no way comparing him to Wayne Gretzky, but one thing that made “The Great One” so great is that he always seemed to be a step ahead of everyone else; he could see a play happen before it happened. Jones has that same kind of eagle eye. He made a habit of catching players off-guard by swooping in for steals like an All-Pro safety. Watch Jones’ eyes naturally lead his body into passing lanes:
In just one season, Jones seems to have checked most of the boxes that make up an elite defender. Versatility? Check. Drive? Check. Fundamentals? Check. Right now, Jones is a longshot to win Defensive Player of the Year. If I was of legal betting age, I’d be putting some Lincoln’s on those odds right about now.
The Pelicans also have one of the best and most diverse benches in the league; everyone gives you a little of everything. The hungry and feisty Alvarado gives off major mosquito energy, pestering ball-handlers nightly and sneaking up on opponents from behind so much to where I started regularly looking behind me in pickup games to make sure I didn’t get Alvarado’d. Graham is a proven microwave scorer. Murphy III has the potential to become one of the best three-and-D players in the league; he’s similar to fellow 2021 draftee Moses Moody in that he’s got long range, long arms and a long career ahead of him because of his impact on both ends of the floor. Hayes leaps like he’s rocking a pair of PF Flyers at all times and is good for at least a few Ballislife-worthy dunks per season.
But the most intriguing member of the New Orleans bench might be rookie Dyson Daniels. He’s very similar to former Pelican Lonzo Ball in that he’s a phenomenal passer and facilitator, although he’s not nearly as good of a shooter. But what Daniels lacks in shooting, he makes up for in defensive ability; he might actually be a better defender than Ball. His instincts on that end of the floor are exceptional for a 19-year old, and he showed it off during the preseason.
At 6’6” with a near-seven-foot wingspan, Daniels offers flexibility on the defensive end and immense facilitating upside on the offensive end, two skills that no other guard on the Pelicans currently offers. I mean, imagine alley-oops with Daniels as the passer, Valanciunas as the screener and Williamson as the dunker. If that gets broken up, Daniels can just get back and deny any layup/dunk attempt. If McCollum wasn’t as good as he is on the offensive end, and if Daniels wasn’t as raw as he is on the offensive end, my take with some paprika and Tabasco hot sauce on it would’ve been to start Daniels, the more natural point guard with more skill on defense, and have McCollum run with the second unit so that he could reign terror on backups around the league. However, I actually think Daniels slots in really nicely with the second unit. Graham/Alvarado, Daniels, Murphy III, Nance Jr. and Hayes? That’s one of the best and most well-rounded second units in basketball right there.
Finally, Willie Green. Green is George Washington leading his men down the rocky Delaware River that is the Western Conference. His squad has bought into the culture Green has tried to create. They hustle. They never quit. They take the floor every night with an extra ember of joy and passion like the Grizzlies did last season. Green’s speech to his team when they were down by ten to the Clippers with their season on the line encapsulates what he’s all about. Other than a championship, culture might be the most difficult thing to achieve in sports. It requires not just a leader to sell something that’s worth buying into, but it requires the players to actually buy into it. While Green only has one season of head coaching under his belt, he’s established a winning culture in New Orleans. Despite their 3-16 start, the Pelicans clawed back. Despite not having Williamson, the Pelicans still found ways to win. Despite having to win two road games just to make the eight-team playoff bracket, the Pelicans weren’t too far away from pulling off just the fifth 8-1 upset in NBA history.
The funny thing about all of this goes back to something I mentioned at the beginning; a Western Conference team could be awesome this season, yet still have to participate in the play-in tournament. The Pelicans could achieve their second 50-win season in franchise history, smash all expectations and still have to not only compete in the play-in tournament, but also have to face a juggernaut like the Warriors in the first round. Even if that’s the case, all that matters here is progress, a potential leap into true contender status for the first time since Flo Rida and T-Pain were topping the Billboard charts. While the West is likely going to be a gauntlet this season, we could very well see the Pelicans soaring to the top of the standings by year’s end.