New Orleans Pelicans named one of the best young cores

In life, we often allow the outside noise to distract us from all that is good. And as New Orleans Pelicans fans, that noise takes shape in the form of injuries, trade rumors, and massive expectations heading into next season. However, we can’t let all that stuff distract us from the fact that we still have one of the best young cores in basketball.

In a recent article published by SB Nation’s Ricky O’Donnell, the Pelicans were ranked as having the eighth-best young core in all of basketball. Here is a snippet of what O’Donnell had to say about his ranking:

"“The Pelicans have some good young pieces to build with around Williamson. Trey Murphy III is close in that regard as a 6’9 sniper who hit 40.6 percent from three on more than six attempts per game last year. His pure shooting stroke makes him a wonderful fit long-term next to Zion. Dyson Daniels is a huge 6’8 guard with major defensive upside, but he needs to prove he can score against a set defense. Hawkins was not my favorite first round pick this year, but he’s a great three-point shooter, and that is always valuable.”"

For those wondering, to be eligible for consideration as part of a team’s “young core,” O’Donnell created the following criteria.

In the Pelicans’ case, this meant that their young core was comprised of Zion Williamson (23 years old), Trey Murphy III (23), Dyson Daniels (20), and Jordan Hawkins (21). His parameters also disqualified Herbert Jones (24) and Jose Alvarado (25).

At eighth, the Pelicans ranked ahead of teams like the Portland Trail Blazers, Charlotte Hornets, and Indiana Pacers. Meanwhile, they finished behind the likes of Minnesota Timberwolves, Detroit Pistons, and Houston Rockets.

O’Donnell briefly mentions this in his article, but one must wonder how much higher the Pelicans would be on that list if Williamson didn’t have the injury reputation that he currently has.