Season Goals: New Orleans Pelicans Role Players
By Seth Nefsky
Alexis Ajinca: Improve Rim Protection
Although the perfect Pelicans season would involve an inconsistent role from Alexis Ajinca, his minutes should not go away entirely. Ajinca provides the Pels with a diverse set of offensive skills, including above average rolling, and decent mid-range shooting. On defense, Ajinca’s 1.64 DRPM and 72nd percentile pick and roll rating would make him a regular contributor on any team in need of a quality backup center.
However, Ajinca is surprisingly lacking on defense in one crucial aspect, which usually comes easily to 7’1″ Goliaths.
His rim-protecting.
Ajinca is not an awful rim-protector, as his 59.3% defended field goal percentage within six feet is quite literally above average. However, with an eleventh in the league 9’4” standing reach, Ajinca should be a better rim protector. His rim protecting deficiencies are often caused by his sluggishness and inattentiveness, which more often than not lead penetrators to open attacks at the basket.
If Ajinca were to improve his rim protection, it would make him a more valuable player, as he would provide high-quality defense on one end, and serviceable offense on the other.
Darius Miller: TBD
What definite knowledge is there of Darius Miller from his preseason performances?
Not that much.
It is fair to say that he is at least a competent three-point shooter, shooting 35.1% in his three NBA years, and 40.8% in his two in Euroleague. It is also fair to say that he is a capable defender, with a 1.45 DRPM in 2013-2014.
Sure, he should see more minutes at power forward than ever before in his career, but standing at 6’7” and weighing over 230 pounds, that should not be a problem for Miller either. So although Miller is by no means a perfect player, the age-old tale of small sample size and the mysteriousness of Euroleaguers makes me plead the fifth at this point.