A major topic of conversation among New Orleans Pelicans fans as the team entered the 2026 offseason was what the future held for Herb Jones.
The 27-year-old wing is coming off his second straight disappointing season and had just signed a hefty extension last offseason. Many fans were calling for Jones' time in the Big Easy to expire before he fell further off. However, the Pelicans clearly have other plans, as with training camp fast approaching, it would be extremely unorthodox to see major roster changes, and that’s not the worst thing.
While the Pelicans' offseason wasn’t loud, they did make one big move hiring Jamahl Mosley as the franchise's next head coach.
Mosley’s defense-first coaching style fits Jones's skills very well and can definitely play a role in his rejuvenation in 2026-27. For a while, I was against the idea of holding on to Jones, but considering how poor his value likely is after back-to-back down seasons, letting him rebuild his value is the right play. Whether he re-establishes himself as a member of the Pelicans' long-term core or builds his value up enough that the front office can feel comfortable trading him, either scenario would be a win.
Jones and Mosley are a match made in heaven
When we look at Mosley’s track record in Orlando over the last three seasons, he had the second-, second-, and 11th-best defensive rating in the NBA. Context matters there because, when you look at the personnel he was working with, his team's defensive success doesn’t really make sense.
From the point of attack, he had Jalen Suggs, who didn’t really enter the league viewed as a high-level defender. Mosley molded him into that. Franz Wagner has always had versatility because of his size, but he’s not elite. The only real elite defender he’s coached is Jonathan Isaac, who played 14.1 minutes per game and 181 games over the last three years. The difference between Jones and Isaac is that Jones is more than capable of playing 30-plus minutes per game and starting at one of the wing spots in Mosley’s first year at the helm.
Giving a coach who empowers his players to defend the way Mosley does, someone like Jones who has been an All-Defensive First Team guy back in 2023-24 is a crazy weapon. The concept of Jones being coached by Mosley should excite fans and have them take the stance that they at least want to see things play out a bit before New Orleans puts the 27-year-old back in trade rumors.
Obviously, the bigger issue with Jones the last two seasons hasn’t necessarily been on the defensive end but rather his offensive production. Over the last two seasons, Jones has shot a combined 39.7 percent from the field and 30.3 percent from three. So how can Mosley unlock that side of his game, you may ask? My simple answer to that is that with confidence on one end comes confidence on the other end.
For years, it’s felt like Jones was the only one locked in and giving it his all 100 percent of the time defensively. Now the Pelicans have a coach who’s going to demand the same standard from everyone. That is going to lessen his load, allow more energy to be devoted to offense, and give Jones some confidence that it isn’t just him pouring it all out on defense.
Jamahl Mosley is going to have a major impact on everyone from the top to the bottom of this roster, but no impact may be bigger than the one he can have on Herb Jones.
Add us as a preferred source on Google