New Orleans Pelicans Links: The Week of August 22
It’s tough to stay caught up on all of the New Orleans Pelicans’ action from across the country and across the internet. Never fear, we have you caught up on everything from the week of August 22nd.
Hoops Habit: Pelicans Offseason Grades
FanSided’s signature hoops blog turned out its offseason grades for the New Orleans Pelicans this week, and it wasn’t as cheery as you might have hoped. Gerald Bourguet wrote optimistically about the prospects of the team’s rookies, but was less than enthused about the free agent additions.
"“But even for the NBA’s 28th ranked defense last season, the Pelicans might regret ponying up this much dough for Hill, who just might not be that good. This year’s free agency class was short on wings, but it’s hard to feel confident the Pelicans are putting the right kinds of players around Anthony Davis when they’re shelling out four-year, $48 million deals to guys like Solomon Hill.”"
According to Hoops Habit, the team chose to spend in a summer where its needs didn’t match the market, and paid the price. Bourguet argues that this marks another season in which the front office failed to cobble together a superior supporting cast around Anthony Davis.
The Vertical’s Summer Rewind for the Pelicans
This week, the Pelicans’ turn also came up in the Vertical’s turnstile of offseason reviews (click “Pelicans’ turn” for the link to the piece). It wasn’t heavy on analysis, but was a nice recap and a way to see it all put in one place. The team was very busy in saying hellos and goodbyes this offseason, so Bobby Marks’ straightforward review was a nice buttoning-up of all of it.
"“In a league that has seen the style of play focus on interchangeable lineups, New Orleans made a concerted effort to build its roster with versatility.”"
He makes many of the same points as Bourguet, but seems more optimistic overall of the team’s outlook. What stands out in this Rewind is the overall youth that the team emphasized this summer; while it may be true that they were made victims of a shallow wing market this year, they made the most of what they were given. At face value, all of these moves are good ones. Money isn’t something to dread in these three consecutive summers of ballooning cap space, as long as you don’t make headlines for your foolishness. The New Orleans Pelicans did not.
The New Orleans Advocate’s Interview with Shawn Dawson
After Pelican Debrief had their conversation with dynamic Pelicans’ camp signee and Israeli-American Shawn Dawson early last week, Shawn spoke extensively with The Advocate’s Brett Dawson (no relation). Dawson shed further light on the intenseness of his summer, his star-stricken dreams of playing next to Anthony Davis or Tyreke Evans, and his confidence that he can make the team and get his contract guaranteed (click “spoke extensively” up above for the link to the interview).
"“All my basketball friends in Israel and some veterans that I got to know from the national team, they all tell me that this is a huge opportunity and not to let it slip away,” Dawson said. “Not everybody gets that chance, especially not from Israel.”"
It’s fair to say the media- and fan-bases here in New Orleans have their eyes on this young player. While getting attached to someone on a non-guaranteed deal is dangerous, Brett Dawson writes that Shawn is someone the Pelicans have had their eyes on for a while.
Next: Analysis of E'Twaun Moore's interview with Basketball Insiders
Don’t be surprised if he sticks around the team for the duration of the season, a la Bryce Dejean-Jones last year, who made the most of his season after not getting a guaranteed deal right away.