New Orleans Pelicans: 4 Free Agents to target post-NBA Draft

James Ennis could be the scrappy bench defender the New Orleans Pelicans need to handle opposing wings

James Ennis- Orlando Magic

I was tempted to select Maurice Harkless here, but I think he’s more likely to ring chase and attempt to sign with a contending team, so I went with James Ennis instead. A 30-year old veteran wing, Ennis doesn’t do anything that’ll wow you but he will make winning plays.

The reason why I think he makes a lot of sense for the New Orleans Pelicans is that he played under Stan Van Gundy’s disciple Steve Clifford.  Some of you might not know it, but Clifford runs a lot of the same concepts that Van Gundy does on both sides of the ball which would make it easy for Ennis to come in as a veteran and run Van Gundy’s system.

In that system, Ennis will probably be asked to be an on-ball defender who handles opposing guards and wings, but he can also handle taking on some big man too. He’s by no means a wow-you-away offensive player but his 35 percent stroke from deep is at least respectable and he has enough athleticism to throw down dunks.

If you’re asking me though, I’m not signing Ennis for what he can do on either side of the ball more than I’m signing him for his knowledge of Van Gundy’s system and his compete level. We covered it a while back, but Ennis is your typical hustle guy who’ll dive for loose balls, force turnovers, and block shots.

Even though he’s only 6’6″ he plays above his size and handles his own. A guy like that would be perfect to put into the New Orleans Pelicans locker room and show the team’s young players how a professional does things. There’s one more guy who I think could do that too though, but he might cost a premium price.