The New Orleans Pelicans had an up and down season that left many fans feeling frustrated with their lack of success.
Some of that is understandable given that they had good health, a budding superstar in Zion Williamson and had added couple of veterans in the offseason in what looked like a move to help them win sooner rather than later.
But the reality is that this was a rebuilding year for the Pelicans, one in which they had to figure a lot of things out on the fly.
It was disappointing in some ways, but successful in others and which side you lean towards probably depends on the expectations you had coming into the season and your overall level of misery, which seems to be pretty high in the Pels’ fanbase.
Regardless of your level of future optimism, the New Orleans Pelicans probably should have been better than they were and came up short largely because several players underperformed.
Here are the three culprits, all of whom are found in the Pelicans’ backcourt.
New Orleans Pelicans: Eric Bledsoe was a disappointment
I am not as down on Eric Bledsoe as some fans, as I never thought he would be anything other than a fringe role player for the Pels, which is exactly what he is.
His overall numbers are down across the board, which was to be expected as he took on a smaller role, but the most disappointing things about Bledsoe were his defense and attitude.
It’s hard to imagine that THIS Bledsoe was an All-Defensive player just last year, as he seemingly took a big leap back in that area. Just about every guard in the league dropped a 40-point game on the Pels this season, often the guy Bledsoe was tasked with defending.
He admitted to “not paying attention” on a crucial play vs. the Knicks which really changed the course of this season.
He was supposed to be “Jrue Holiday-light” but instead was a middling offensive player and poor defender. The New Orleans Pelicans needed a lot more out of their backcourt this season.
New Orleans Pelicans: Josh Hart did not progress much
Josh Hart is a fan-favorite, so I am sure I will hear about this, but he didn’t really live up to expectations this season.
We already knew Hart could defend and he showed that again this season, often guarding much-bigger guys as the Pels struggled to find defense off their bench.
We also knew that Hart could rebound, and he did. In fact, he was arguably the best guard rebounder in the league not named Russell Westbrook.
But there were expectations that Hart would make a leap as a scorer and shooter and that did not happen.
His scoring average actually went down from last season, and his 32 percent from 3-point range was the worst of his career.
The Pelicans are going to have a tough decision on Josh Hart, as he is very good at some things, but needs big improvement in others.
Is he ever going to get there as a shooter? If Hart had shot closer to 40 percent this season he’d probably be looking at a massive pay raise, but right now he’d be a risky sign for a team that needs a lot more shooting.
Hart’s season was a not a failure, but he did underperform based on how we thought things might go for him in a contract season.
New Orleans Pelicans: Lonzo Ball was too inconsistent
Yes, Lonzo Ball had his best year scoring the ball and yes his 3-point and free throw percentages were the best of his career, but I still think he underperformed.
His stats went down in just about every category, but that was to be expected as Zion Williamson seized a much bigger role in the offense.
But Lonzo Ball still led the team in touches, yet got to the free-throw line less than once a game and didn’t really develop in the mid-range or working out of the pick-and-roll.
Fans were expecting Ball to improve offensively, especially taking the ball to the rim, but we didn’t see much if any progress in that area.
The biggest reason he underperformed this season was inconsistency. Lonzo Ball can put tougher stretches in which he looks like the best player on the floor, but then the next game will look very average and disappear.
I have no idea if the New Orleans Pelicans are going to re-sign Lonzo Ball this season, but if they don’t, it will be because he underperformed offensively. He was just too inconsistent to be relied on from game to game, which is the #1 thing he will have to improve if he wants to be a star in the NBA.