NBA Preview 2013-2014 Season: New Orleans Pelicans (formerly known as the Hornets)
Last Season: 27-55 (Finished 14th in the Western Conference)
Prediction: 34-48
Key Losses: G Greivis Vasquez and C Robin Lopez
Notable Free Agent Signings: SG/SF Tyreke Evans, and G Jrue Holiday
The New Orleans Pelicans will undoubtedly be much better than they were last season. However, I doubt that they lack the personnel to make a significant run in the post-season, if they make the post-season at all. I believe that the pelicans are in the hardest division in the Western conference; the Southwest division. Surrounded by great teams in the San Antonio Spurs, Houston Rockets, Memphis Grizzlies, and the Dallas Mavericks, the likelihood of the Pelicans posting a better record than any of those teams is slim.
For a team with few assets, the pelicans sure came away from the off-season with a couple of great players. One such player is Tyreke Evans. Evans had a great rookie season with the Sacramento Kings. He directed the offence beautifully, came through in the clutch, and had excellent court vision. He posted rebounding and assists averages that were above average in the guard position and seemed on the verge of becoming a franchise player. Unfortunately, since his first year, Evans’ NBA career has been a rollercoaster ride. Hindered by injuries, the four-year player’s point-per-game and assist totals have dipped with each season. He becomes a member of the New Orleans Pelicans after coming off a 15-point, 3.5-assist season. Normally, this sort of consistent decline is an area of concern for teams, but the pelicans seem to think that they can return Evans to his rookie form as they awarded him a $44 million contract. Only time will tell if Evans is worth this monstrous deal.
The second major player that New Orleans signed this summer was Jrue Holiday. The all-star guard who has spent his entire career in Philadelphia brings an array of different skills to this improved Pelican’s roster. Opposite than Evans, Holiday is coming off his best season since being drafted out of UCLA in 2009 (the same year as Evans). In his all-star season, Holiday proved himself as an excellent scorer who could finish with contact in the paint. He showed team management that he was a dependable three-point shooter. But best of all, he proved he could pass. And boy, did he do a good job of that. Holiday almost doubled his 2011-2012 assists average last season (4.5), by averaging eight. It’ll be interesting to see how Evans, Holiday, and pelicans guard Eric Gordon play together. I imagine that coach Monty Williams will want to start one off the bench and the only candidate I can see that happening with is Evans. All three can score and pass, it’s just the matter of who can run William’s offence to perfection. I expect to see two of the three on the court at all times and I think the pelicans will have one of the best backcourts in the league.
Let’s not forget that the Pelicans also have Ryan Anderson and last years number one pick Anthony Davis on the payroll. Many consider Anderson, including me, to be the best three-point shooter in the league. His size makes it hard for opposing players to contest his shots, and many big men are afraid to leave the paint unguarded to guard Anderson beyond the arc. Davis is coming off a fabulous rookie season where he averaged close to 14 points and 8 boards a game, while playing excellent interior defence. If the backcourt trio of Evans, Holiday, and Gordon can develop chemistry this pre-season, I believe the pelicans will have a core that could prove to be deadly and earn them a playoff berth sometime in the future, but not this season.