New Orleans Pelicans 2024-25 season preview: One move away from being major threat in West

(Amber Matsumoto/Yahoo Sports Illustration)

The 2024-25 NBA season is here! We’re breaking down the biggest questions, best- and worst-case scenarios, and fantasy outlooks for all 30 teams. Enjoy!

NEW ORLEANS PELICANS

2023-24 finish

Offseason moves

Additions: Dejounte Murray, Javonte Green, Daniel Theis, Yves Missi, Antonio Reeves, Karlo Matković

Subtractions: Jonas Valančiūnas, Larry Nance Jr., Dyson Daniels, Naji Marshall, Cody Zeller, E.J. Liddell

Complete roster

The Big Question: Can the Pelicans make the roster make sense?

Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram and Dejounte Murray have all made All-Star teams. CJ McCollum is one of the best players of the past decade not to make an All-Star team. Herb Jones and Trey Murphy III are two of the game’s best 3-and-D wing prospects.

The Pelicans should be awesome. They will not be championship contenders as currently constituted.

Why? Well, for starters, they do not have a true center. They let Jonas Valančiūnas walk in a sign-and-trade deal for a top-50 protected second-round draft pick. They drafted Yves Missi, a 20-year-old project, and signed Daniel Theis, a 32-year-old journeyman. These are not options for a serious team.

Ideally, they would have traded Ingram over the summer for a center. He has been available for some time and is a free agent at season’s end. Would-be suitors are wary of paying top dollar for a player who has not won a playoff series in eight seasons, though I am higher on his ability than most. He was great in his first playoff appearance and terrible this past spring. His true value is somewhere in between.

Regardless, New Orleans has more issues than the absence of a center and the presence of a lame-duck star forward. Its rotation makes no sense. On paper, a lineup of Murray, Jones, Murphy, Ingram and Williamson could be a killer small-ball quintet. In practice, playing their best five together for any length of time puts an unwelcome onus on Williamson, whose injuries have slowed a potentially historic rise.

McCollum could be an electric sixth man. He has the game for instant offense. But he has indicated to reporters, “I’m not going to volunteer…

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Author : Yahoo Sports

Publish date : 2024-10-10 13:37:33

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