New Orleans Pelicans Season Outlook: E’Twaun Moore Needs to Be Reliable

If E’Twaun Moore wants to become a key piece to this New Orleans Pelicans team, he will need to bring reliability to the shooting guard role.

E’Twaun Moore is a fresh face at shooting guard for New Orleans Pelican fans.

The 27 year old made an impression last year on the Chicago Bulls, starting in 22 games. He averaged 7.5 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.7 assists in just over 21 minutes per game. His 45.2% shooting from behind the arc made him a dangerous offensive player.

The Pelicans are looking for him to replace their former sniper from long range: Eric Gordon.

Eric Gordon used to be the Pelicans long-range specialist. He could fire from most of the court and bury them with ease. Also, his shooting kept the floor spaced for guys like Anthony Davis and Ryan Anderson to do what they wanted on the offensive end.

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His defense was a liability, yet the Pelicans knew that fact. Moore will end up being a better fit in that department. He’s able to switch from shooting guards to point guards defensively and stick with them. E’Twaun also has quick hands, making him effective in swiping the ball free.

While Gordon’s offensive stats end up balancing each player out, Moore’s greatest strength to this team can be his reliability.

Moore has been on the court for at least 56 games each of the past four seasons. Though some of those games he did not play due to him playing a minor role.

Eric Gordon never played a season of more than 64 games in New Orleans. From 2012-2016, Gordon missed a total of 189 of the Pelicans’ 410 games. That’s just under 54% of games played.

The New Orleans Pelicans needs a shooting guard that can score. However, they need that player on the court in order to bring strong shooting to the team.

The other problem with Gordon was his drastic swing in shooting numbers. His best shooting year in New Orleans was the 2014-2015 season, when he shot 44.8% from behind the arc. His worst was 2012-2013, which ended at a measly 32.4%.

Those drastic differences made it tough for the Pelicans to predict how he’d play. Moore’s 45.2% last year is quite the anomaly, if you compare it to his first four years in the league. However, if the team needs him to shoot consistently, Moore has to be reliable for a certain percentage. The drastic difference night in and night out will not help New Orleans.

This is the biggest challenge the Pelicans need Moore to succeed in. If he’s to be the right replacement for Gordon, he will need to be a reliable shooter and defender. The Pelicans have not had reliability at the guard position for quite some time. This is due to injuries and up-and-down play from both Gordon and Jrue Holiday.

It may be up to Moore to remedy the situation. That is, if the Pelicans want to make a leap this campaign.

It feels like a lot to ask of guy like E’Twaun, brought into a much bigger role for a young team. However, this is a chance he will want to pounce on. The New Orleans Pelicans could become a new-look franchise, with a chance of surprising the entire league. For them to do that, Moore’s reliable play and shooting will be a driving force the team has lacked in previous years.

Next: New Orleans Pelicans Season Outlook: Solomon Hill

The New Orleans Pelicans will lean on E’Twaun Moore this upcoming season. While Buddy Hield will need time to learn the system and adjust to the NBA, Moore will likely hold down the majority of the shooting guard minutes. That means his job will be to bring everything he has in his arsenal to the table every single night. Reliability is tough to find in a league of players specialized in different categories. Still, E’Twaun Moore is a great player, with potential to be a starting player in this league. This will be his season to prove it to the Pelicans and all fans in the Bayou.