Training camp is fully underway for the New Orleans Pelicans. Here’s a look at what to watch for as the battles and stories continue to develop.
Injury Bug
If there was anything I was hoping for coming into last Friday’s New Orleans Pelicans Media Day, it was positive injury news for several guys. I suppose we got that last week with the acknowledgment that Anthony Davis had successfully recovered from both of his offseason ailments (a lingering leg injury that required surgery and a labrum issue that ended his 2015-16 season):
Anthony Davis said he participated in virtually all of NO's first practice. Didn't do some conditioning at the end. Said he feels great.
— Justin Verrier (@JustinVerrier) September 24, 2016
Yet it was nothing short of disheartening to hear the recovery prognosis for Tyreke Evans and Quincy Pondexter, both of whom are expected to miss the beginning of the season. The key for training camp will be monitoring the recovery of both players, whom GM Dell Demps gave November-January timetables for. With Q-Pon now going on 16 months without basketball activity, it’s worth wondering whether or not he would even be able to handle a return.
Oh, and Tyreke was on and off the court for the entire 2015-16 campaign, and mentioned a blood clot in his leg at Media Day. Not good. If either of these players can benefit from a return to the regimented grind of NBA training camps, it will help clear a lot up down the organization: the salary situation, roster spots, playing time, style.
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Anthony Davis
For NBA stars, the last step toward superstardom is often that intangible collaborative and rallying effort that we most often call “leadership”. Some care not to try their hand, and others fall to failed attempts. So to see Anthony Davis – with the support of his coaches and teammates – come out firing on all leadership cylinders last Friday was a beauty to behold. Sometimes all it takes is buy-in.
Preseason is preseason, yes, but our eyes will be on AD; he’ll need to communicate tirelessly to get the defense where these guys want it to be, and he’ll have to be a force on the bench to encourage and empower a roster full of players on their second contract.
The end of the roster
As of now, the Pelicans have seven guys fighting for a couple of spots at the end of the bench: Chris Copeland, Terrence Jones, Robert Sacre, Lance Stephenson, Alonzo Gee, Quin Cook, and Shawn Dawson. With several ball-handlers already waiting in the wings to cover for Jrue Holiday during his leave of absence, the team has targeted versatile big men, athletic wings, and Robert Sacre.
Related Story: Can Chris Copeland crack the Pelicans final roster?
Teams bring in a plethora of bodies to add competition and life into camp, hoping to someday strike gold. Though the Pelicans are no exception, this season’s camp deals are somewhat out of necessity; while Pondexter, Evans, and Holiday recover, the team needs wing players capable of replacing those minutes every night. And when your frontcourt options are like the Pels’, you might as well bring some bigs in to push the guys currently in place.
Rotation games
Kudos to Ryan Schwan of Bourbon Street Shots for taking a whack at the complexities of an NBA rotation with his guess over the weekend, but I think it’s fair to say that outside of the guys who will start and the other players who have at least earned minutes, we know very little.
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Tim Frazier is due to play quite a few minutes at the point until Jrue returns, with Galloway and Moore backing him up. Asik will start at the center spot, with Ajinca likely being given a chance to back him up as the season starts. AD will play quite a bit at the five. The wing, as Schwan notes, will be a crapshoot. That’s where the competition is highest, and how Buddy does during camp will go a long way in locking things down.