This 2024-25 NBA season has been a wild ride for the New Orleans Pelicans. They came into the year with legitimate goals to be a dark-horse title contender, only for early injuries to derail their entire season just weeks into the campaign. That steep drop became a seemingly endless decline as the Pelicans continue to rack up losses en route to a coveted spot at the top of the NBA Draft lottery odds.
Accordingly, most of New Orleans's players have had awful individual seasons as well. Brandon Ingram spent most of his time sidelined with injury before getting traded to the Toronto Raptors at the deadline. Herb Jones only got to play in 20 games before getting ruled out for the season due to a shoulder tear. Dejounte Murray fractured his left hand in his very first game with the Pelicans, came back and struggled with his efficiency due to his prior injury, and then tore his Achilles.
There are a handful of players who are having good seasons, despite New Orleans's overall struggles as a team. Yves Missi has been one of the better rookies in the entire league, Trey Murphy III should be a leading Most Improved Player candidate, and Zion Williamson has quietly put together the best campaign of his entire career. Still, this squad has mostly been struggling. In a season full of hardships, perhaps no one has had a more infuriating year than sophomore shooter, Jordan Hawkins.
Jordan Hawkins could fall out of the Pelicans' graces soon
Jordan Hawkins had one of the most intriguing rookie seasons out of everyone from his draft class. He put up some of the most explosive individual scoring performances out of all the freshmen, with several games with over 20 points including two 30 pieces. Between those offensive outbursts, his picturesque shooting stroke, and the confidence he displayed taking jumpers on the move and off of a variety of catches and launches, Hawkins built up a cult following of supporters who believed he had star potential.
Although he showed plenty of promising glimpses, he also left a lot to be desired from his rookie year. He was a turnstile on defense, offered practically zero outside of his shooting on offense, and, even then, struggled severely with his efficiency. For the year, he shot just 38 percent from the field.
All that was supposed to change this season. This year, Hawkins was expected to turn those encouraging flashes into actual, solid on-court production. For a minute there, it looked like he may have been taking a leap until he was sidelined with his back injury. Since returning from that issue, he's again severely struggled with his efficiency.
Now, he's currently averaging just 37 percent from the field and 33 percent from deep. Not only has he failed to improve on his efficiency, but his deep marksmanship has actually declined this year.
Don't get me wrong. It's not as if Hawkins hasn't shown any signs of growth this season. He's a markedly better ball-handler and interior scorer, even if the numbers don't immediately back it up. He's also gone from disastrous to below average but ultimately passable on defense. Those flashes of greatness are still there too. He's tallied seven games this season with 20 or more points.
But he has to be better. Next year, the Pelicans will likely have a stacked roster featuring Dejounte Murray, CJ McCollum, Trey Murphy III, Zion Williamson, Yves Missi, Herb Jones, Kelly Olynyk, Jose Alvarado, Brandon Boston Jr., and whoever they take with their 2025 lottery pick. That's not to mention Bruce Brown Jr. who could be re-signed and their potential free agency additions. They'll also be looking to make a return to the playoffs next season, which means they won't have the time or patience necessary to allow Hawkins to play through rough stretches.
This lost season from the Pelicans should have been the perfect opportunity for Hawkins to play loose, untethered by playoff aspirations. He should have been gaining meaningful reps this year and taking notable strides in his game. The fact that he couldn't make a leap despite getting more opportunities and less pressure is very concerning.
There's a reason that our own Andrew Duvielh believes that Hawkins will be a perennial Sixth Man of the Year candidate someday. It's because he has all the tools necessary to be a lethal shooter and microwave scorer in this league. But he has to put it together, especially in these last handful of games for the Pelicans. Because, if he doesn't, he might not get very many opportunities to prove himself moving forward.