New Orleans Pelicans: 3 things to watch for in the 2022 NBA Draft

2022 NBA Draft: Possible surprise draft picks for the New Orleans Pelicans

Though Daniels and Mathurin have been the players most commonly attached to the Pelicans, there could be a couple of surprise names.

The Pelicans are in the position to swing for the fences on high upside talent, as they don’t need this pick to be a contributor from day one.

They can bring him along slowly, so they can take a risk on a raw prospect with huge upside and there are two who could fall to the 8th pick.

Shaedon Sharpe has as much upside as anyone in the draft, and is a guy who could fall into the Pelicans’ laps in the 2022 NBA Draft. He hasn’t played since high school after sitting out this entire season at Kentucky, but he has the make up of a star, as he is very athletic (highest vertical in the combine) and can already shoot from long range.

Another guy to watch for is Ousmane Dieng, 6-foot-9 forward from France who last played for New Zealand. He was reportedly very impressive during workouts, and is another guy with huge upside who might take a season or two to develop.

He is a long and athletic wing who can defend and has the length to be elite on that end.

The New Orleans Pelicans are one of the biggest wildcards in this draft, as they don’t have a clear need and can just take the player or offer that benefits them most in the long term.