3 Reasons the Pelicans and P.J. Tucker are a match made in Heaven

The New Orleans Pelicans have been taking full advantage of their offseason. Vice President David Griffin and the team brass have constantly been tinkering with the roster. They've made multiple different changes to their training camp lineup.

First, they signed Jalen Crutcher, Keion Brooks Jr., and Izaiah Brockington. Shortly after, they waived Brockington to make room for Adonis Arms, a G-League standout with an incredible journey trying to find his niche in the NBA. Unfortunately, Arms didn't last long either, as the Pelicans waived both him and sharpshooter Matt Ryan on Thursday, October 10. In their places, they signed veteran journeyman Elfrid Payton and undrafted rookie Josh Oduro, likely to Exhibit 10 deals to get a close look at them during the remainder of the offseason.

Clearly, Griffin and this franchise aren't content with the current roster and are taking advantage of all of their resources to try to find more potential contributors. According to Spotrac, the Pelicans are well over the salary cap and are currently slated to pay the luxury tax. Many have speculated that their financials led to them cutting ties with Ryan and will also keep them from filling their final eligible roster spot for the 2024-25 regular season. But, that doesn't mean the Pelicans can't still find ways to upgrade the roster.

The Los Angeles Clippers recently announced that P.J. Tucker will remain away from the team during training camp and preseason, as the organization will work to find him a new home. P.J. Tucker might just be the perfect piece to make this New Orleans Pelicans team click.

The Pelicans are a perfect fit for P.J. Tucker

1. The Pelicans are a contender with a role for P.J.

Since his run with the James Harden-era Houston Rockets, P.J. Tucker has bounced around the league from contender to contender, trying to find a new home that will make use of his unique skill set. First, he landed on the Milwaukee Bucks, then the Miami Heat, then the Philadelphia 76ers, and, most recently, the Clippers.

Each of those squads was a team with title aspirations that needed a little more depth. Tucker, though, doesn't view himself as an end-of-the-bench veteran or glorified assistant coach a la Udonis Haslem. He believes that he can still contribute to a real postseason run.

There aren't many teams in the NBA who simultaneously have the talent to realistically compete for a title and the lack of depth to warrant P.J. Tucker's services. The Pelicans absolutely are one of them. New Orleans currently has x solid players that they can depend on in the playoffs: CJ McCollum, Dejounte Murray, Brandon Ingram, Zion Williamson, Herb Jones, Trey Murphy III, and Jose Alvarado. Outside of that group, it's a toss-up whether they'll get steady contributions from Jordan Hawkins, Daniel Theis, Yves Missi, Javonte Green, etc.

2. P.J. Tucker would slide seamlessly into Willie Green's system

The Pelicans defense under Head Coach Willie Green has grown accustomed to compensating for poor individual defenders. With defense-averse players like CJ and Zion on the roster, New Orleans has instilled a team mentality on that end of the court, predicated on quick, timely rotations, proactive help defense to shut down driving lanes, and switchability to prevent open shooters and cutters. Through that scheme, they've been able to maintain their status as a middle-of-the-road defense despite having much worse personnel on paper.

P.J. Tucker has built an admirable NBA career due to his defensive acumen. Currently 39 years old, he still has the lateral quickness and instincts necessary to match up with most ball-handlers on the perimeter while carrying the strength and bulk needed to be an impactful interior deterrent. He has the versatility, experience, and skill set to not only work within Coach Green's defense but elevate it.

3. P.J. Tucker can be an actual small-ball center

The Pelicans have made it clear that they intend on playing small, fast, and "positionless" basketball next season. This isn't due to preference, but rather necessity from their questionable center rotation.

Interestingly, Coach Green has tried to make it known that Zion Williamson should not be expected to be their small-ball five in any capacity in this upcoming season, even though he'll likely be the biggest player on the court for the Pelicans regularly. Instead, New Orleans is planning on running out Herb Jones as their starting anchor. While Herb is surely up to the task and Coach Green was likely nitpicking with semantics when speaking on Zion's role this year, it is still alarming that the Pelicans neither have a dependable real center nor a great option to play small-ball five.

P.J. Tucker could certainly be the latter. He's had plenty of experience and success doing it for the Rockets, Bucks, and Heat. Tucker has successfully guarded the likes of Joel Embiid, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Anthony Davis in the past while still providing the floor spacing and rebounding necessary to make a small-ball lineup work. The Pelicans should inquire if he's willing to do it again for New Orleans this season.