New Orleans Pelicans select Kira Lewis Jr. in 2020 NBA Draft

The New Orleans Pelicans have made their first pick in the 2020 NBA Draft.

The New Orleans Pelicans kicked off their 2020 NBA Draft with the 13th pick.

Many players had been rumored to the Pelicans, and it makes sense, as they need depth at both forward positions and at center, which is why it was surprising they took a point guard.

The Pelicans have been at the center of just about every trade rumor even after sending franchise-favorite Jrue Holiday to the Milwaukee Bucks for George Hill, Eric Bledsoe and a treasure chest of future draft picks, most of which will be conveyed long in the future when the Bucks will hopefully be bad.

The Pelicans have three more picks, the 24th, 39th and 42nd and could possibly package them to move up, or just take a “throw something at the wall and see what sticks approach” allowing training camp to decide who makes the team and who goes to the G-League.

New Orleans Pelicans NBA Draft: the Pels take Kira Lewis Jr. with the 13th pick

Kira Lewis Jr. was a bit of a surprise pick, though we did profile him as a possibility for the Pelicans.

The Pelicans need depth behind Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson, so it is a bit of a puzzler to take a point guard, but it shows you that the Pelicans must have felt Lewis Jr. was too good to pass up.

This will also raise questions about whether the Pelicans plan to trade Eric Bledsoe or one of their other many guards.

They still need depth in the interior and might get it by moving on from Bledsoe or even Lonzo Ball, who might fetch a nice return.

Lewis Jr. is one of the quickest players in the draft, a guy who can get to the rim and push it in transition. He’s more of a scorer than a playmaker, so would likely come off the bench to add some scoring punch to a unit that desperately needed it.

Lewis has active hands and can be disruptive on defense, so he could be an upgrade there as well.

We’ll have a lot more on this pick and more, so check back.