The New Orleans Pelicans wrapped up preseason by beating the Washington Wizards 107-106. To open this game, I found myself writing down a few things in my notebook: “I wish they moved the ball like this all the time. Can they play this fast and generate this many turnovers every game?”
A big reason the Pelicans for these notes was because of Jeremiah Fears.
After a great showing on his 20th birthday in the Pelicans’ previous preseason game, Fears brought the same energy on Friday. His performance against Washington was the best possible statement he could’ve made to Jamahl Mosley that Fears should start on opening night against the Indiana Pacers. Mr. Zero Fears closed out the work week with 14 points, three rebounds, five assists, and three steals, while shooting 5-of-11 from the field and 1-of-3 from three-point range.
With Dejounte Murray’s status for Wednesday’s matchup with Indiana still in question, Fears’ chances to start that game already feel really high. But even if DM5 is fit to play, Mosley still needs to go with his sophomore guard at the point, even if he has to start the two together.
Fears needs to start against Indiana
There’s something different about the way the Pelicans can play when Fears is the lead decision-maker and the one with the ball in his hands. More than anything, it’s his speed. Fears' ability to blow by virtually any defender on the court is something a defense can’t scheme for, and it makes him naturally draw two defenders. This generates a ton of kick-outs for open threes, dump-offs to his bigs, or even just clean looks at the rim for himself.
Sticking with the theme of getting the ball to a big, another reason to start Fears is that no one on this team seems to get more out of Yves Missi than him. He had four dimes in the first quarter alone, and two of them were him spoon-feeding Missi for easy scores. Sure, you can argue that Murray can run the pick-and-roll or set up Missi just as well, but the chemistry between Fears and Missi is unmatched.
Something Antonio Daniels mentioned on the broadcast was Fears snatching rebounds and how that can make the Pelicans deadly because it allows him to start the break. I thought that was an excellent point and is just another example of how good New Orleans can be when Fears is the one in control of things from the opening tip.
When you don’t have a ton of floor spacers like the Pelicans, and you lack a ton of off-ball movers, having a guy who can get into the lane as easily as Fears does is so valuable. He makes the Pelicans offense go, and that wasn’t something that New Orleans has been able to say they’ve had in some time. So instead of waiting until the 20-game mark to let him loose, Jamahl Mosley just needs to do it from day one.
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