New Orleans Pelicans: Predicting starting lineup, sixth man and closers
New Orleans Pelicans: Josh Hart will be the most important bench player
The New Orleans Pelicans finally ended the suspense and re-signed Josh Hart to a three-year deal.
Restricted free agent G Josh Hart is closing in on a three-year, $38 million deal to stay with the New Orleans Pelicans, his agents Aaron Mintz, Steven Heumann and Dave Spahn of @CAA_Basketball tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 16, 2021
I think this is a great contract for both sides, as Josh Hart got a nice payday and the Pelicans got a versatile and popular player on a contract that isn’t going to hurt them.
Hart has already proven that he is a quality defender who can guard up and down a lineup and that he is a very good rebounder for his position.
Related Story. Pels need to avoid the mistakes the Cavaliers made with LeBron. light
He also brings hustle and is a well-liked teammate who can fit into just about any lineup. I think he’ll be the Pels’ 6th man off the bench and the guy who gets the most minutes.
But the question is how good can Josh Hart be? The only thing holding him back is his 3-point shooting, as he shot a career worst 32.6 percent last season, which is below average for the position.
If he can shoot closer to 40 percent the Pels will be ecstatic about that contract, as Hart does pretty much everything else well for a bench guy.
If he shoots the ball better this season expect him to be in the running for 6th man of the year.