Pelica Debrief
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New Orleans Pelicans: How important is 2019-2020 for Pels’ five former Duke Blue Devils ?

By Willie Lutz

WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 29: Zion Williamson #1 and Tre Jones #3 of the Duke Blue Devils celebrate following their game against the Virginia Tech Hokies during the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament East Regional Semifinals at Capital One Arena on March 29, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 29: Zion Williamson #1 and Tre Jones #3 of the Duke Blue Devils celebrate following their game against the Virginia Tech Hokies during the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament East Regional Semifinals at Capital One Arena on March 29, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images) /
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THOUSAND OAKS, CA – AUGUST 30: Frank Jackson #15 of the New Orleans Pelicans handles the ball during NBA off-season at Mamba Sports Academy in Thousand Oaks, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Layne Murdoch Jr./NBAE via Getty Images
THOUSAND OAKS, CA – AUGUST 30: Frank Jackson #15 of the New Orleans Pelicans handles the ball during NBA off-season at Mamba Sports Academy in Thousand Oaks, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Layne Murdoch Jr./NBAE via Getty Images /

4. Frank Jackson – Class of 2017

Frank Jackson shouldn’t have too much to worry about this season, as long as he keeps up the progress made during his rookie campaign. He’s one of the select few holdovers from last year’s squad and his spot on the roster seems safe for at least this season.

Selected 31st in the 2017 NBA Draft, Jackson is a relatively fresh 21-year-old talent in the league. Considering he missed his entire rookie season after undergoing foot surgery, Jackson did a nice job kicking his career into gear during his first full campaign.

He played solid basketball last season, averaging 8.1 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 1.1 assists. He appeared in 61 games, starting in 16, but mostly had a reserve role where he averaged around 19.2 minutes per night.

His last ten games of the 2018-2019 season went really well, even though the team was playing somewhat meaningless basketball at the time; he actually started the last nine games of the season. He averaged 17.2 points and shot 44.4% from the floor, but still struggled to set-up teammates with only 2.1 assists per game, playing around 33.5 minutes over the span.

Jackson also did have a pretty nice summer league, playing well in a role as a lead ballhandler in the Pelicans offense. He broke out and scored the ball really well, looking like he could even make a significant jump this season.

While Jackson leaves something to be desired as a passer, he’s a solid backup point guard option for the New Orleans Pelicans, who have really good distributors in Lonzo Ball and Jrue Holiday ahead of him in rank.

It’s not all free and easy for Jackson. He’s on a team building for the future, one he could either be a part of or easily traded for the right package. Jackson does have to prove he can be more than a game manager as a point guard and start being a little more clever in his facilitation. Fortunately, he has a lot more targets this season than he did for most of the 2018-2019 rendition of the Pels roster.

Jackson’s season mainly comes down to his ability to be solid. It’s unlikely we’ll see a huge leap from the young talent, but if he can keep the offense steady behind Ball, he’s setting himself up for success in his second full season.

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