The New Orleans Pelicans’ roster had a lot of new faces this season. Let’s take a look at who had the best first year in the Big Easy.
The New Orleans Pelicans have done something that doesn’t happen very often in the NBA or any other league, which is to nearly change out the entire roster and still remain competitive.
With 14 players from last season departing, the New Orleans Pelicans needed to replace some major production.
The biggest infusion of talent came from the trade between the New Orleans Pelicans and Lakers; gone was Anthony Davis, coming back were Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball and Josh Hart.
The draft was another source of talent addition; Zion Williamson, Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Jaxson Hayes, were first round selections in the 2019 draft.
The Pelicans activity in free agency added some veteran leaders and depth to the roster as well, with Derrick Favors, J.J. Redick and Nicolo Melli signed to deals during the summer.
The players who spent their first season with the Pelicans during the 2019-20 season are Zion Williamson, Nickeil Alexander Walker, Jaxson Hayes, Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball, Josh Hart, Derrick Favors, J.J. Redick, Nicolo Melli, Zylan Cheatham and Josh Gray.
Let’s look at how each fared this year and see who had the best year. To figure this out we’ll compare the preseason projections and expectations to how each player performed this season (all projections are from ESPN).
Didn’t play enough to make a strong impact
Josh Gray – 2 games, 1.0 points, 1.0 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 50.0 FG%
Zylan Cheatham – 3 games, 1.3 points, 2.0 rebounds, 0.7 assists, 40.0 FG%
Gray only played in two games this year, filling in as a reserve guard when the New Orleans Pelicans dealt with injuries. He only played 23 minutes in those two games and his advanced numbers weren’t great in that limited time.
New Orleans would prefer to keep him in the G League where he played 37 games, averaging 22.5 minutes and improving as a player.
Cheatham falls into this category as well, playing 3 games with New Orleans and 34 games in
the G League. He’s a versatile defender who shot a decent 33% from three in Erie.
If he can improve as an offensive player he fills a need the New Orleans Pelicans will have in the future.
Young guy who got lost in the teams depth
Nickeil Alexander-Walker – 41 games, 5.1 points, 2.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 33.9 FG%
2019-20 Projections – 13.2 points, 3.4 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 44.7 FG%, 25.0 min
NAW had a strong summer league where it looked like he was going to crack the rotation and be a key piece of the reserves (I took him in a fantasy league off his summer performance).
But he averaged only 11.2 minutes in the 41 games he played this year and broke his wrist a week before the NBA shut down.
NAW’s defense (0.4 WS) grades higher than his offense (-0.7 WS). For a rookie to
be better on defense than offense is a little encouraging as it shows NAW has the basketball IQ to handle NBA defensive schemes already.
His shooting needs to get better to earn more playing time. A 33.6% two-point FG% won’t cut it in the NBA. His shot profile fits the current thinking across the league with 34.8% of his shots being of the catch and shoot variety and 37.9% coming from within 10 feet.
Big men who played well in the limited minutes they got
Nicolo Melli – 52 games, 6.8 points, 3.0 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 44.2 FG%
2019-20 projections -N/A
Melli coming from the Euroleague was expected to be the floor spacing big man the New Orleans Pelicans needed to open up space for teammates to attack the rim. He shot 36.1% from three point range this year which is decent, but I’m sure the team was hoping he’d hit them at a higher rate.
While this was his first year playing in the US there may have been some adjustment to a slightly longer three-point arc. He did shoot lights out in January and February draining 51.9% and 46.0% respectively from three in those months (in March he shot a very bad 19.0%, but I’m not putting much stock into 4 games).
Defensively Melli was solid and actually graded out nearly as well as he did on offense. He does need to stop fouling as much (he averaged 2 per game) if he wants to get more than the 17.1 minutes he did this year.
Jaxson Hayes – 56 games, 7.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 55.0 FG%
2019-20 projections – 8.0 points, 5.4 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 58.6 FG%, 20.2 min
Hayes was a highly regarded prospect coming out of the University of Texas and the flashes he showed this season prove why.
His athleticism was on full display with that put back; Hayes ran the floor after the defense caused a turnover and didn’t quit on the rebound even though one of the best three-point shooters in the NBA had an open look.
While he was solid as a rim-running center in this rookie year he needs to develop some range as a shooter to become more of a threat on offense.
Hayes was a pretty good rebounder in his 17 minutes per game and being such a raw player it’s encouraging to see that he developed some chemistry with Lonzo and the rest of the young core.
Similarly to Melli, Jaxson would pick up bad fouls while playing (while this is accepted as part of the learning curve for young big men) and it caused head coach Alvin Gentry to bench the rookie for five of the last seven games before the shutdown.
A do-it-all wing who keeps the team together
Josh Hart – 57 games, 10.2 points, 6.5 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 41.6 FG%
2019-20 projections – 6.8 points, 3.3 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 43.9 FG%, 20.8 min
Hart was a solid all-around contributor for the New Orleans Pelicans. He was the glue guy for all different lineup combinations with this team. As the least heralded player coming back from the Lakers in the Anthony Davis trade, Hart may have been expected to fly under the radar.
While his play may not have popped off the stat sheet, if you watched him play you’d notice a guy who was often in the right place at the right time getting steals and deflections on defense.
His rebounding may have been the most surprising aspect of his game. His 21.4% defensive rebounding rate was the second highest for any guard this year (only Luka Doncic was higher with 24.7%). If he keeps up this level of play, Hart will force his way into more minutes than the 27.4 he had.
The best three point shooter in team history
JJ Redick – 54 games, 14.9 points, 2.6 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 45.0 FG%
2019-20 projections – 13.6 points, 2.0 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 44.6 FG%, 25.4 min
Unfortunately it doesn’t seem like Redick will continue his streak of making the playoffs every season of his 13-year career. He’ll have to settle for having the best three-point percentage in franchise history, shooting 45.2% in his 54 games with New Orleans.
While typically thought of as a spot-up shooter, Redick is nearly as effective shooting pull-ups off of screens. His constant movement off-ball forces the defense to continually rotate and shift where the help comes from. Players like Redick are often overlooked when fans talk about each player’s contribution to an offense.
Injuries derail strong seasons
Derrick Favors – 45 games, 9.2 points, 9.9 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 62.0 FG%
2019-20 projections – 13.4 points, 8.2 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 56.9 FG%, 28.5 min
If it weren’t for an injury that cost Favors 13 games early in the season, he’d be higher up on this list. With Favors on the court, opponents had a 109.3 Offensive rating compared to the 114.3 rating with him off. The anchor of the defense, Favors impact will surely be missed if New Orleans lets him walk this offseason.
While Favors nearly averaged a double-double, he only played half of each game (24.2 min per game). The New Orleans Pelicans were light with his minutes in an attempt to see how Hayes played at center.
Favors was a very efficient player on offense, 83.9% of his shots came within 10 feet and he made 68.6% of his attempts from that range.
He’s a bit of a throwback center, he plays close to the basket and stifles opponents drives to the rim; his 1.0 blocks per game may seem low but the New Orleans Pelicans have two guards (Jrue Holiday and Lonzo Ball) who don’t allow opponents to get much penetration.
Zion Williamson – 19 games, 23.6 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 58.9 FG%
2019-20 projections – 28.1 points, 11.1 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 56.0 FG%, 41.5 min
Zion was electric during his summer league debut right up to the point where he got hurt. The knee injury he sustained in that summer league game required him to get surgery and miss most of this season. He only played 19 games after returning on Jan 22nd.
His impact upon returning was huge and while New Orleans wasn’t winning at a great rate, the starters were the best lineup in the NBA.
Williamson dominates the game near the basket, 92.5% of his shots come from within ten feet. This type of shot chart looks a lot like a power forward or center from the 1980’s than it does 2020. He’ll need to add a little bit of range to his game to keep defenses from crashing down when he gets the ball in the paint.
Marquee names in the AD trade
Lonzo Ball – 56 games, 12.4 points, 6.2 rebounds, 7.0 assists, 41.2 FG%
2019-20 projections – 12.0 points, 6.9 rebounds, 8.4 assists, 40.6 FG%, 32.7 min
Lonzo has made some impressive strides in his first season with the New Orleans Pelicans. While it was fair to wonder if he would ever score enough to be an above average NBA player, his defense and playmaking were never a question.
With Lonzo next to Jrue the Pels have one of the best defensive backcourts in the NBA. Lonzo is able to stop most perimeter players from penetrating the lane and gets his share of steals and deflections.
His three-point shooting has been his biggest improvement this season, he shot 38.3% from deep this year compared to 32.9% on fewer attempts last year. Since the last day of January, Lonzo has connected on 45.7% in that 16 game heat check.
Brandon Ingram – 56 games, 24.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 46.6 FG%
2019-20 projections – 13.2 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 47.5 FG%, 29.6 min
Ingram has had the best first year of any player with New Orleans this year, going from a player who showed flashes of star potential to a bona fide All-Star. The scary blood clot that forced him to shut down his 2018-19 season seems to be a thing of the past.
This offseason (whenever that will be) Ingram will most definitely get a max contract offer from the New Orleans Pelicans, and he’ll be worth it.
Ingram has become a more efficient scorer in each of his four seasons and this year shot nearly 40% from three point range (38.7%). Couple that with an increased scoring burden and you have the young star teams were seeing when he was drafted second overall in 2016.
If Ingram can get better as a defender, he’ll enter All-NBA territory at a position stuffed with some of the best players in the league (Giannis Antetokounmpo, LeBron James, Kawhi Leonard just to name a few).
It’s a shame that these players might not to get to finish their first season with the New Orleans Pelicans, but their play so far has to have fans excited for next year.
Thanks for reading!