Pelicans Draft: 4 Shooting Guards to consider if Jrue Holiday is traded
By Nick Alvarez
Tyrese Maxey has legitimate star potential that the New Orleans Pelicans could unlock if they select him with the 13th pick in the 2020 NBA Draft
Tyrese Maxey- Kentucky
I’ve gotten a lot of hate when I suggested that Tyrese Maxey could be an excellent selection at pick 13, but maybe if the Pelicans trade Jrue Holiday that’ll change. Out of all the players I’ve written about here, Maxey is certainly the one with All-Star potential.
When I watch his game, I see a fusion of young Jrue Holiday and Bradley Beal, no joke. I don’t know why but Maxey just has that x-factor needed to be great in the NBA. Who knows, maybe it’s the Kentucky thing given that he’s the Kentucky player on this list, and Kentucky continues to pump out star shooting guards.
His game is just impressive because it’s built on speed but it’s also refined as well. Maxey is excellent at attacking the rim to score, but he’s not a pure all-or-nothing driver. Maxey has quite the bag of tricks, one that includes crafty mid-range pull-ups and step-back moves.
If you look at Maxey’s 3 point numbers you might not be impressed, but if you then consider that Maxey took on a lot of Kentucky’s offense, you’ll see his struggles were more about shot selection than shooting mechanics. Maxey has a clean and compact motion that should work for him in the NBA.
Do you want some defense? Maxey has that too, his quickness has allowed him to be a valuable defender against opposing guards and even some wing players. At 6’3″ he won’t be able to cover everyone but he definitely won’t be a slouch.
We still need to wait and see what happens with Jrue Holiday, but one thing is for sure if the Pelicans decided to trade him then there are plenty of options to replace his production in the 2020 NBA Draft.