New Orleans Pelicans NBA Mock Draft: Finding the next Nikola Jokic

The New Orleans Pelicans could get creative in the 2020 NBA Draft.

The New Orleans Pelicans have a lot of options heading into the 2020 NBA Draft.

The consensus is that they will use their 13th pick as part of a trade package or to draft a big wing in the mold of Saddiq Bey.

But then again, who needs a consensus?

Ask the Denver Nuggets, who have built a deep, consistent winner around a seven-foot point guard who moves like a house and can’t jump over a credit card.

Nikola Jokic is one of the new “unicorn” players of the NBA, guys whose skills don’t necessarily match their bodies.

Kristaps Porzingis and Luka Doncic dominated this year for Dallas. Jokic led the Nuggets to the Western Finals and Giannis Antetokounmpo is redefining what it means to be a point forward/center in the NBA.

The Pelicans may have already found the next unicorn in Zion Williamson, a powerful forward who can handle the ball and run the floor like a guard. Why not try to add another?

Not every draft has a unicorn, but if you can find one, it is a fast track to success, as you have a weapon that other teams find difficult to defend or plan against.

There may just be a unicorn in this year’s draft, the type of player who draws oohs and ahhs while changing the game in some fundamental way.

If the Pelicans want to get creative around Zion Williamson, then they should seek out big playmakers similar to Nikola Jokic. Luckily, there just might be one available in the 2020 NBA Draft.