New Orleans Pelicans: Biggest questions for teams in the Southwest

New Orleans Pelicans: Questions for the Southwest Division

Can the Memphis Grizzlies’ two stars stay healthy?

The Grizzlies were one of the surprise teams of the NBA last season, nabbing the two-seed in the Western Conference and showing they have one of the deepest rosters in the NBA, evidenced by the fact that they were just as good with Ja Morant as without him.

But stars ultimately win titles and the Grizzlies’ two stars have some question marks. Jaren Jackson Jr. will have to miss the opening of the season (at least) after a foot surgery and Morant only played 57 games last season and plays a style that is going to be hard to sustain, especially at his size.

The Grizzlies will have to do a better job of managing Morant to keep him the lineup and ensure that he is healthy for the playoffs, and will have to find a way to replace JJJ’s production early in the season.

Will the New Orleans Pelicans’ young players make a big leap?

The biggest question surrounding the New Orleans Pelicans is obviously “can Zion Williamson stay healthy” as they could be a top-4 seed with him but will struggle to make the playoffs again without him. That is well-trodden territory though, so I’ll leave it for now even though it will hang over the entire season.

As long as Zion is healthy, the Pels will contend, but how far they go will depend on the development of their young players. Can Herb Jones be a more effective 3-point shooter? Will Trey Murphy III make a big leap in an expanded role? Can Jose Alvarado be a scoring threat and playmaker as well as an elite defender? Will Dyson Daniels make the rotation and be able to defend at a high level right away?

If the answer to all or most of these questions is yes, then the Pels are going to be one of the deepest teams in the NBA and could compete for a title as soon as next season as long as the “Big 3” stay healthy.