Going into the season, the Pelicans were finally healthy and acquired a star guard, Dejounte Murray, in a big trade with the Atlanta Hawks, and most people thought they would, at minimum, be a playoff team, but it has been a mess. About halfway through, they are sitting at 11-32, last in the West.
The main reason: Injuries
On October 25th, the Pelicans newly acquired guard, Dejounte Murray, needed to have surgery for a hand injury that basically set the tone. That led to a mediocre start in October, but then in November, they won 2 games only. Zion has had some small injuries that have been keeping him out Brandon Ingram as well. CJ McCollum has missed some games too.
The list just goes on
The Next Issue: The Center Position,
Losing Jonas Valanciunas in free agency wasn’t ideal. His replacement is a vet, Min Daniel Theis, who should not be a starter in the NBA. Yves Missi, their first-round pick this season, who started the season as backup center, has become the starter, which is a good sign.
What has gone well:
Trey Murphy, a starting forward for them, has had an excellent season. He was always a solid player, but this season his PPG has jumped from 14.8 to 21.6, he has just become a better scorer.
The good thing about this mess the Pelicans own their 2025 first-round pick. This year's draft is one of the better ones, and the first overall pick will be Cooper Flagg. As of now, they are at the bottom in the West, so that’s a good sign for them. If they were somehow to win the lottery, Flagg and Zion, CJ McCollum and Dejounte if not traded.
Also Brandon Ingram but I would bet that McCollum or Ingram are traded before the deadline. And Yves, who will be the starting center for the next couple of seasons as he develops. Even if they don’t land the 1st overall pick, there are still plenty of nice prospects they can get in the top 5.
Another good sign
The same thing happened to the Grizzlies last season; they simply had a down year and got a nice draft pick and selected Zach Edey, and he has been an elite weapon for them as they sit in 3rd place right now in a lethal western conference.
One downside: Coaching
Willie Green simply isn’t that good. He isn’t horrible, but he also isn’t great. I expect him to be the HC going into the 25-26 season, but he also might not be. It’s difficult to tell what Management and Ownership are thinking. If he were let go, that would be a very coveted job in the off season, probably the best one, but then again it is too early to tell on some things.
This season has been utterly disappointing for New Orleans, but there are so many bright spots; it’s rare you see this many on a 15th team place in their conference.
Whether the Pelicans get Flagg or not, I 100% expect them to be a top 5 seed next season. They just got so many good players and will only add more this off season barring any substantial injuries. The Pelicans have a very interesting and strong future; it will be really cool to see how that roster pans out by the start of next season.
@ThatManChe on X
@Sidelines_SN on X
Comments