New Orleans Pelicans: Breaking down Nickeil Alexander-Walker’s improvement

New Orleans Pelicans: It’s easier with Zion and Ingram

Something that sets the New Orleans Pelicans apart from a lot of NBA teams and is an interesting twist on the modern NBA is how Van Gundy essentially flips his players’ functions.

A lot of teams nowadays will have their 3s and 4s primarily focus on defending and spotting up. The onus is on the guards to both playmake and score.

Think of the Phoenix Suns with Chris Paul and Devin Booker at the guard spots and then the likes of Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, and Jae Crowder on the wings. Another good example is the Portland Trail Blazers, and how Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum are used compared to Robert Covington or Derrick Jones Jr.

Instead, the Pels run the offense through their 3 in Brandon Ingram and their 4 in Zion Williamson. The guards are the ones given the responsibility to play robust defense and be prepared for spot-up shots. Broadly speaking, that is what Lonzo Ball and Eric Bledsoe are counted on to do. Now, Nickeil Alexander-Walker is also being developed in this role.

This is what a typical three for Alexander-Walker now might look like. Because Williamson commands so much attention, the Mavericks have three defenders looking at him. All Alexander-Walker has to do is stay ready.

Once Williamson sees that everyone on that side of the floor is focused on him, he has the knowhow to make the right pass out to the perimeter. By the time the ball is in Alexander-Walker’s hands, Jalen Brunson is too far away to contest and it’s a clean look at the basket.

This shot against the Celtics is another example of that. Brandon Ingram running the pick-and-roll draws three Boston defenders over, leaving Alexander-Walker relatively unattended to at the top of the arc.

In order to have success with the archetypes that Van Gundy is using, so to speak, it’s crucial that Ingram and Williamson make the right decisions. The good news is that both of them can.

Ingram has really developed as a facilitator since the moment he stepped foot in the NBA on a weak Los Angeles Lakers team, while Williamson’s nous for playmaking has been apparent since his days at Duke—even if it took a while for the Pelicans to tap into it.