New Orleans Pelicans: 3 things to watch in Pels’ preseason game vs. Heat

New Orleans Pelicans: Things to watch in preseason game vs. Miami Heat

The Backup Power Forward Battle

One of the Pelicans’ biggest offseason needs was to find a power forward to compete with Nicolo Melli for backup power forward minutes.

The Pels brought in Wenyen Gabriel, a strong defensive-minded player who is pretty much the opposite of the “stretch” four Melli.

Stan Van Gundy has already given Melli some praise this offseason and Nicolo will likely get the call early on, but if he doesn’t shoot or defend well, Gabriel will be breathing down his neck for minutes.

We know that SVG prioritizes defense over everything else, and that guys who don’t play it are going to find themselves on the bench.

Melli does have value as a shooter, but he couldn’t hit anything down the stretch last season, and since he doesn’t defend well, shooting is all he really has.

If Melli isn’t knocking down shots consistently, Gabriel will get a chance to prove that he deserves those minutes as a guy who can defend multiple positions.

If Melli plays well in preseason it may not matter, but if he doesn’t, this will be a camp battle worth watching.