New Orleans started last season terribly as they only won 3 of their first 19 games. It seemed impossible to think that they still had a chance at reaching the postseason, but not only they did exactly that but they also gave a great fight to the team with the best record in the regular season.
Even before they got CJ McCollum from Portland midseason, the Pelicans were already being a competitive team. A group of young players started getting more minutes and having real impact on both ends: second-round pick rookie Herbert Jones established himself as an elite defensive player; undrafted rookie Jose Alvarado was a pest coming off the bench; and second-round pick rookie Trey Murphy III finished the season leading all rookies in 3-point percentage. Rarely a team manages to have three rookies having real impact in their first season, but the Pelicans managed that.
Steven Adams was traded for Jonas Valanciunas in a deal that worked for both teams. New Orleans was once again a top rebounding team while Valanciunas with his shooting range gave them more value on offense that Adams could ever give. With McCollum joining the team, New Orleans’s offense became even more potent and he was very efficient by shooting 49.3% FG and 39.4% 3pts in 26 games for the team.
The Pelicans won both their games in the play-in (including an upset road win over the Clippers) and pushed Phoenix to the limit. They were up in G6 at the end of 3Q, but an historic night from CP3 prevented a G7.
2022/23 Outlook:
First of all, Zion Williamson is back. He only played 85 out of 226 games in three seasons, but he is looking healthier and especially thinner. When healthy, Zion had an incredible run at the point forward role back in the 2020-21 season. However, the team doesn’t even need that level of usage on offense from him anymore, as they have now more weapons on their roster. This lowers the pressure for Zion. However, it will be interesting to check how Zion and Valanciunas work together on the frontcourt as Zion is at his best operating close to the basket and Valanciunas’s big body might disturb him.
The main problem for the Pelicans on offense last season was their 3pts shooting, as they were just #26 on volume and #28 in efficiency. They really didn’t add anyone to their roster who could solve this issue during the offseason. Therefore, they will need their young players to keep developing. No matter what, this really seems like the first season where they have an impressive roster since AD left for Los Angeles.