The Pelicans should play even faster with Zion Williamson

New Orleans Pelicans: Zion Williamson in the half court

Another reason to push the pace next season is that the Pelicans could find some spacing issues in the half court, something that is always going to be an issue when your two leading scorers are both guys who do their damage in the mid-range and paint.

CJ McCollum’s presence should help, as he is likely to launch more 3-point shots next season, and I think we’ll see an uptick in Brandon Ingram’s long-range attempts as well.

But it will still benefit the Pelicans to try to get their points early to avoid the stagnation their half court offense sometimes suffered when Zion was in the lineup.

New Orleans is a young and deep team with a lot of high-motor players, so they will be able to bury teams at times by scoring in flurries, getting steals and pushing the pace in transition.

The Pelicans played fast last season, but they need to play even faster when Zion gets back to take advantage of their defense, Zion’s ability to finish and to avoid spacing issues that could happen when the game slows down.