The New Orleans Pelicans have the 10th pick in the upcoming NBA Draft and have a number of ways to use it.
The Pelicans are one of the mystery teams this offseason, as they still don’t have a head coach, though a couple of names have risen to the top of their search.
It’s also unclear if they are going to bring back Lonzo Ball or Josh Hart, two key parts of the roster who will be entering restricted free agency.
All of these things could affect how they use the 10th pick in the NBA Draft, as the Pelicans have a number of glaring needs this offseason regardless of what happens with Ball and Hart.
They could use the 10th pick in a trade, which might make the most sense given their desire to win now, but if they don’t, they still have a lot of options that could lead to impact talent.
New Orleans Pelicans draft picks: Drafting for need in the NBA Draft
The Pelicans clearly need defense and shooting, which they could address with the 10th pick.
Two names have emerged as possibilities that would help in Davion Mitchell and Corey Kispert, as the first is a hard-nosed defender who can shoot the 3-ball and the second a guy who most think is one of the best pure shooters in this draft.
But what if the Pelicans don’t plan on bringing back Lonzo Ball or some team like the Chicago Bulls offers him a contract that they don’t want to match?
In that scenario, the Pelicans might look for Lonzo’s replacement and there is a guy who has been shooting up draft boards lately who offers some of the same qualities but would be on a rookie contract that would make it easier to add additional talent.
Josh Giddey is not a household name, but he is a guy to keep an eye on as a possible dark horse candidate for the New Orleans Pelicans with the 10th pick in the NBA Draft.