The New Orleans Pelicans front office saw their patience pay off Wednesday when Bennedict Mathurin agreed to a two-year deal to come to the Big Easy. Mathurin was a well-reported target of Joe Dumars and Troy Weaver going back to before the 2026 NBA trade deadline, and after a long wait, they got their guy. Another move they made this summer was hiring Jamahl Mosley as the franchise's next head coach. Similar to Mathurin, the Pelicans front office was known to have interest in Mosley well before they landed him.
But that’s where the comparison between Mosley and Mathurin stops. Throughout his head-coaching tenure in Orlando, Mosley was viewed as a defensive head coach, and Mathurin isn’t the best fit for a team like that.
Mathurin has always been an explosive scorer who thrives getting downhill, drawing contact, and finishing at the rim. Defensively, there has always been more to be desired for the former No. 6 overall pick. The Pacers and Clippers both need stoppers, and the role was there for Mathurin to take, but he never truly bought into that side of the ball. For a Pelicans team that is expected to pride itself on the defensive end under Mosley, Mathurin’s fit in that type of culture is kind of awkward.
Mathurin may struggle to fit into Mosley's style
The counterargument to what I’m saying is likely going to be that Mathurin has never had a coach who empowers his players to be elite defensively the way Mosley will. Which is a fair argument, and when looking back at the Magic he coached, he made a lot of meh defenders look very, very good. The difference is that Mosley had players with great size and length that had all the physical tools to be great on the defensive end. Mathurin doesn’t have the luxury of the same size and defensive versatility at 6-foot-5.
Beyond concerns about his defensive fit, there are also issues with how he fits in offensively. Mosley likes to give his stars the ball and is likely going to rely on Zion Williamson and Dejounte Murray to run the offense more often than not. This would place Mathurin off the ball where he doesn’t thrive.
Mathurin has always been at his best offensively when the ball is in his hands and he’s creating his own offense. The opportunity to do that may not be there even when coming off the bench because of Saddiq Bey, Derik Queen, and Jeremiah Fears.
Unlike someone like Herb Jones, who fits the mold of a typical Jamahl Mosley player, Mathurin has some red flags that don’t align with the style of play New Orleans is expected to bring this season.
Great players and great coaches find a way to make things work, and Mathurin is greatly skilled, and Mosley is a great head coach. But it’s going to take some give from both sides to see Mathurin fit into the Pelicans' system.
Add us as a preferred source on Google