The New Orleans Pelicans have shuffled their roster in an effort to build the right type of team around Zion Williamson.
So far the talk of the offseason has mostly revolved around what the Pels need to do to make Zion happy, as there were some rumblings from his camp that the young superstar was unsatisfied with the direction of the franchise.
To David Griffin’s credit, he didn’t sit on his mistakes, trading away Eric Bledsoe and Steven Adams for Jonas Valanciunas, and orchestrating a sign-and-trade of Lonzo Ball and replacing him with Devonte’ Graham.
The Pelicans drafted two long 3-and-D type wings and will have a much different roster heading into next season, even before adding another free agent like Lauri Markkanen or making a trade for a guy like Buddy Hield.
I think the new roster is already more talented, but possibly more importantly, they are the right type of group for Zion Williamson.
New Orleans Pelicans: The Pels shouldn’t rush the roster construction around Zion Williamson
After getting rid of J.J. Redick, Nicolo Melli, Steven Adams and Eric Bledsoe, the Pels are not only going to be younger but much faster, two things that will help Zion Williamson.
Zion likes to get out and run, but unfortunately we didn’t see it enough in Stan Van Gundy’s 1990’s style offense, which mostly relied on Zion bullying his way through four defenders.
This style took its toll, as Zion Williamson took hard fouls all season and ended up getting hurt. This team is going to run more, which should save Zion from constant contact.
I also love that the roster got younger, as the Pels were putting out a serious “Cavaliers during the first LeBron James era” vibe.
People forget that LeBron didn’t win a title until his 7th season after wasting the first six trying to carry old, terrible rosters to the Finals by himself.
LeBron didn’t play with many guys his own age, as the Cavs were constantly trying to plug in veterans in an effort to win now at all costs. They never really built a “team” around LeBron and he eventually fled for greener pastures.
The Pelicans’ core is now mostly around the same age, which will allow them to grow together and give Zion Williamson some teammates he can relate to on a personal level.
The team will be younger, faster and not rely on Zion so much in the half court.
New Orleans Pelicans: Willie Green will relate to Zion Williamson and his young teammates
It seemed like David Griffin made all the wrong moves last offseason.
He surrounded Zion Williamson with a bunch of slow veterans and then hired a head coach with an “old school” style that never seemed to work with the young players on his roster.
Willie Green has already shown some of the ways he is different from Stan van Gundy in the huddle and strategically, and these differences are going to be appreciated by Zion Williamson.
Green is much calmer than Van Gundy and really seems to be a communicator in the huddle, not just a screamer.
I think Green will also unleash his young team, allow them to push the pace, play faster and in general, have more fun than they ever did playing for SVG.
Even in Summer League the atmosphere around the team has a different feel, and I think Zion is going to love playing for Willie Green.
New Orleans Pelicans: The Pels added wing defenders around Zion Williamson
The Pelicans’ bench was one of the worst in the NBA last season. It was old, slow and couldn’t defend. This year the bench can be a weapon.
The Pels got the exact types of players they needed in the draft in Trey Murphy III and Herb Jones, two long defenders who can cover a lot of ground, defend multiple positions, run the floor and shoot 3-pointers.
Both Murphy III and Jones can be disruptive defenders, and when you also factor in an improved Naji Marshall, this year’s bench units could be very good defensively and offer the Pels a lot of options.
One of them is to go small with Murphy III at center, as he showed he can do against Evan Mobley and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Instead of trying to work with a bench full of old guys who can’t defend, Zion Williamson will have young, fresh legs coming off the pine and guys who can defend their position.
With a younger, faster team being led by a coach he might actually like, Zion Williamson has the right type of team around him and they should only get better as the season goes on.