The New Orleans Pelicans major jumps and major falls in league rankings

The New Orleans Pelicans look rather different this season. So what have been the major changes and how are they measuring up against both opposing teams and the ghost of last years Pelicans squad?

The Good:

First off the New Orleans Pelicans are running at supreme efficiency in terms of their shooting, making an impressive 48.1% of shots from the field. Good enough for the third-best field goal percentage in the league.

This is coming off a season in which the Pelicans previously ranked 20th in field goal percentage. So it looks like cutting out the bulk of those mid-range jumpers is paying off. Especially with Anthony Davis having his best three-point shooting season yet.

Much of the reason the New Orleans Pelicans have such a high field goal percentage comes from their dominance scoring the ball in the paint. The Pelicans have leaped from a merely mediocre 13th rank in points in the paint last season all the way up to 2nd best racking up 53.3 points in the paint per game this season.

Finally, the Pelicans are sharing the ball nicely. Very nicely. With only the Warriors and 76ers picking up more assists per game, the Pelicans are moving the ball far more than last season when they ranked 12th in assists. Sadly this increased ball movement has not come without its troubles…

The Bad:

Last season the New Orleans Pelicans did a pretty good job of holding onto the ball. However, this season the Pelicans are enjoying sharing the ball so much that they seem determined to make sure the opposing team gets a go to.

What nice guys.

Turning the ball over 16.6 times per game ranks them as the 27th best team and not giving the ball away. A season ago they were the 5th best team.

Ouch.

Hopefully, the addition of Rondo into the starting line-up can help put a stop to the Pelicans self-destructive generosity when it comes to sharing the ball.

Now on to the Pelicans defense. When news hit that the Pelicans were to be adding Rajon Rondo and Tony Allen to the roster an elite defensive roster was envisioned by many fans. Perhaps a little optimistically.

Nonetheless, the New Orleans Pelicans were pretty good at hindering opponents ability to put the ball in the basket a season ago. The Pelicans ranked 7th in opponent field goal percentage and 10th in opponent three-point percentage. Not bad.

However, this season the Pelicans defense turned over a new leaf. And sadly this leaf was shriveled, disappointing and slow on rotations. The New Orleans Pelicans defense is currently allowing opponents to shoot 46.4% from the field and 37.7% from deep. Good enough for 20th and 22nd place in the league.

Overall, the Pelicans have a lot going for them…as well as quite a lot that isn’t. It’s still early but if this team can get a little more greedy holding onto the ball and improve their perimeter play on both ends of the court, good things will come.

Next: DeMarcus Cousins Needs To Tone It Down If NOLA Wishes To Prosper

The fact that we are in late November and the New Orleans Pelicans are not already out of the playoff picture is a nice feeling. You couldn’t really say that last season. Or the one before.