The New Orleans Pelicans' summer league officially came to a close with a 113-114 loss to the Pacers. And it was a brutal one; the Pelicans were in the fight for most of the game before Robert Baker exploded for 26 points, 10 rebounds, and four threes. This loss was a fitting finish to a disappointing time in Vegas for the Pelicans.
Obviously, the Pelicans' summer league isn't about wins and losses, but rather a way to evaluate talent and determine what they have in their young players. However, losing all five of your games is embarrassing and shows that the Pelicans' young talent has a ton of work to do.
For most teams, they had a standout player; for example, for the Jazz, it was second-year forward Kyle Filipowski, for the Clippers, it was Jordan Miller, and for the Knicks, it has been Kevin McCullar, etc.
However, the Pelicans didn't have a standout. Sure, Jeremiah Fears and Derik Queen both had good individual games, but they weren't consistently playing great. Christian Shumate showed flashes of hustle and defensive intensity, and Trey Alexander had a great game against OKC, but in the rest of both players' appearances, they were just okay.
This type of poor play in Summer League is concerning heading into next season
Not having a single standout across the summer league will only hurt the Pelicans. Fears, Queen, Alexander, Hunter Dickinson, and Lester Quinones are all under contract with New Orleans heading into next season. And the fact that neither of these five stood out means the Pelicans likely can't count on them in the regular season.
I was expecting big performances from Quinones and Alexander heading into summer league. Both players were coming in on two-way contracts and had the chance not only to earn a call-up but also to have their contracts converted to standard NBA ones because of the Pelicans' two open roster spots.
However, that didn't happen as Quinones continued to show he's a streaky shooter who doesn't provide much as a playmaker or defender. And Alexander showed he still hasn't figured out his role, but has the tools to be an NBA-level player.
The Pelicans' disappointing showing in the summer league makes it even clearer how much they'll have to rely on their experienced core next season. The Margin has just grown that much smaller, as the uncertainty surrounding the production of two-way contract players and rookies has only increased the importance of their main roster.