The NBA this off-season has made the best teams better and the worst teams even worse. There is one exception to this and this is a team that nobody is talking about that is going to be very interesting to watch next year is the New Orleans Pelicans. Yes, you read that correct the New Orleans Pelicans, formerly known as the New Orleans Hornets. This team has a lot of talent that no one seems to recognize, it may be a little disorganized talent but there is a lot of talent on this roster.
Some teams in the NBA try to build teams with many wing players like the Miami Heat, or a lot of post players like the Indiana Pacers, the Pelicans have built a team of guards and lot of them at that. They traded their first round pick to the Philadelphia 76ers for Jrue Holiday, they signed free agent Tyreke Evans, and they already had Eric Gordon and Austin Rivers. I'm not sure if they plan on trading some of these assets if not this team will be trying a unique and uncommon style next year.
This team also has very mobile big men too that will fit this style in Anthony Davis, Ryan Anderson, Greg Stiesma, and Jason Smith. This week Anderson and Davis have been down in Las Vegas trying out to be on the USA Men's Basketball team for next summer's World Cup. Anderson has been doing what he has done his whole career hit threes and rebound. Davis however has been turning heads with his improved perimeter game knocking down threes and 15-17 foot jumpers with ease. These two will help clear the lane and allow the guards on his team to penetrate and kick for wide open jumpers. Davis as everyone knows can run the floor very well and will be able to be very effective when this team gets into the fast break.
Offensively, this team reminds me a lot of the Phoenix Suns during the prime of Steve Nash's career. Put five athletes on the court and run up and down and score as many points as they can. Just like the Suns had no problem scoring I don't think this team will in the slightest the real questions come on the defensive side of the ball. They have decent size in the starting lineup but no real depth there. When they run into teams like the Houston Rockets, Indiana Pacers, and the Chicago Bulls that constantly apply pressure on teams in the paint it could cause a lot of problems. They will have to make sure they know their style which is going to be play with a high tempo and stretch the court. The best defense for the Pelicans is going to be a high tempo offense.
For this team to be successful the players will have to realize their scoring will go down. A lot of these players were the man at their previous like Evans in Sacramento, Holiday in Philadelphia, and to an extent Davis at Kentucky. This team has the potential to do a lot with the talent and athleticism it possess. But everything is going to come down to team play spread the ball on offense and play together on the defensive side of the ball. I think the Pelicans will be able to make some noise and make into the playoffs.
Tell me what you think in the comments below!
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