New Orleans Pelicans starting lineup: locks, fringe and potential break-ins

There will be some new faces in the New Orleans Pelicans starting lineup.

The New Orleans Pelicans had a whirlwind offseason, firing their head coach, trading the face of the franchise, as well as three of their four draft picks.

With Jrue Holiday and Derrick Favors no longer on the roster, the Pels will be moving on from the most successful starting five in the NBA last season.

At least 40 percent of the starters will be new, and the Pels now have a number of interesting options to explore when it comes to lineup combinations.

Some of the starting five is a lock, while other players will be fringe starters who are matchup dependent. There are even a few bench players who might break into the starting five at some point in the season.

New Orleans Pelicans: Which players are locks for the starting lineup?

The Locks

There are really only three players who are absolutely 100 percent locks to start every game that they play.

Zion Williamson is the centerpiece of the team and the one who the offense will work through. It’s a no brainer that he is going to start every game.

Same with Brandon Ingram, who will also handle the ball a lot more than he did last season. The Pelicans don’t really have a backup for him anyway, so Ingram is going to start every game.

Steven Adams was not brought over in a trade then given an extension to be anything other than the starting center. He may end up only playing 25 minutes a night, but he will start.

Obviously, Lonzo Ball and Eric Bledsoe are the most likely to round out the starting five most of the time but I could see a scenario where one of them comes off the bench if the starting unit doesn’t gel right away.

Bledsoe would be the most likely to be pushed to the bench so that the Pels are sure to have a playmaker on the floor at all times.

There are also a few bench players who may work better as starters in the long run.