Coming off an offseason like the New Orleans Pelicans' offseason, with minimal roster changes, the majority of the excitement fans have is seeing how Jamahl Mosley will utilize this roster. Over Mosley’s head-coaching career, he has built a reputation as a defensive-minded coach despite not really having a ton of defensive talent during his time in Orlando. On the 2026-27 Pelicans roster, the obvious name that pops off the page as someone Mosley can maximize is Herb Jones. The former All-Defensive First Team member is due for a massive resurgence under his new head coach.
Outside of Jones, the name that really stands out to me is Micah Peavy, as his archetype of player fits everything Mosley looks for when deciding who fits his rotation and who doesn’t.
Peavy didn’t have the most efficient rookie season, shooting 38.5 percent from the field and 25.9 percent from three, while averaging 4.3 points per game; his defensive effort is why he made 62 appearances for New Orleans. Peavy is a gritty, tough, physical, calculated disruptor on the defensive end who takes so much pride in being an on-ball stopper and in creating offensive chances by getting stops. Which is a style of play that will quickly shoot him into favor with Jamahl Mosley.
Micah Peavy is the type of player Jamahl Mosley will fall in love with
The majority of the discussion surrounding Peavy has been about his offensive game, and whether, if he can grow into a strong shooter on that end of the floor, he’ll be an elite role player. During Summer League, he showed some major progress as a shooter, shooting 50 percent from three on three attempts per game across three appearances. But even if that doesn’t translate to the regular season, Mosley is still going to have an urge to play Peavy because of how disruptive he is defensively.
Mosley’s Magic teams always thrived on chaos, and Peavy fits that. His ability to wall up, keep his chest up, and slide his feet created a ton of havoc for the Pelicans on defense in 2025-26. And now with a coach that empowers the defensive side of the ball the way Mosley does, Peavy’s confidence and aggression on that end is only going to rise.
Between Dejounte Murray, Zion Williamson, Saddiq Bey, Trey Murphy III, Jeremiah Fears and Derik Queen, this team is going to have no problem putting the ball in the basket. The bigger question is who, other than Herb Jones, can consistently get stops when the game slows down. Meaning if Peavy can prove early on to Mosley that he can be that other stopper, he’ll be a permanent part of the rotation.
The Pelicans at full strength don’t need Peavy to be something he’s not; they don’t need him to be a shot maker or a massive positive offensively. They need him to get in his chair and guard his yard, which he’s been doing his entire basketball career, and Jamahl Mosley is going to quickly fall in love with that.
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