The New Orleans Pelicans are heading into the season with plenty to prove, and ESPN’s updated Basketball Power Index doesn’t exactly hand them a confidence boost.
In the latest projection, New Orleans sits at -5.3, which puts the team fourth-worst in the NBA. The model pegs the Pelicans for a 28-54 finish - a number that would still count as their best record since 2023/2024.
That kind of preseason snapshot doesn’t decide anything, but it does show how the league is viewing this group before the games start to count. And right now, the picture is pretty bleak.
The offense grades out a little better than the defense, landing at No. 24 in the BPI. There is still some reason to think that side of the floor could function if the Pelicans are healthy, especially with Dejounte Murray, Trey Murphy and Zion Williamson all in the starting group.
The problem is spacing, or really the lack of it. New Orleans was one of the league’s least effective teams from the mid-range and from three-point range, finishing in the bottom four in both areas. Even more telling, 50.0% of the team’s points came inside the paint, the highest mark in the league.
There’s no mystery about where the points were coming from, and that can make life easier for a defense that knows what’s coming. Last season, the Pelicans fit that description.
They didn’t exactly solve that issue with a splashy shooting addition this offseason, though Bennedict Mathurin could potentially help. Zion Williamson and Derik Queen have both said they are working on taking more shots from outside, and Yves Missi is the one player who was not putting in that kind of work on his jumper this offseason.
Meanwhile, the bigger focus in camp has been defense. New Orleans has not ignored the offense, but the main push since training camp opened has been trying to repair one of the league’s worst defensive units.
Jamahl Mosley and his staff have a reputation on that end, but the overhaul won’t happen overnight. The Pelicans are currently sitting No. 26 in the BPI on defense, and while that would be a rough outcome, the preseason has not offered much evidence of a rapid turnaround.
The encouraging piece, at least from the team’s perspective, is that the buy-in is there. What matters now is the process - installing the system and getting everyone aligned with what the staff wants.
If that progression shows up over the course of the season, New Orleans can call it a step in the right direction. But if the numbers hold, a third straight season under 30 wins would land as a major disappointment for a fan base hoping these projections are missing the mark.
In Other News...
Pelicans Just Clarified One Bottom Of The Roster Battle
The Pelicans moved one more piece off the board at the end of the roster bubble, officially waiving forward Caleb Houstan as training-camp decisions continue to sort themselves out. Houstan, a former second-round pick, has spent four seasons in the NBA without locking down a consistent role, and New Orleans has now chosen to use its final openings on other players.
No corresponding move came with the release, which keeps the last bit of roster math from being fully settled in public. New Orleans still has a little housekeeping left, and the deeper implication is that the team is trimming toward a group it clearly feels better about, even if one final spot appears to be spoken for behind the scenes. [Read more 🡒]
Dejounte Murray Knows What The Pelicans Need From Him Now
Dejounte Murray has spent much of his time in New Orleans trying to get right, and the Pelicans are still waiting to see the version of him they imagined when he arrived. Injuries have limited his availability across his first two seasons, but the veteran guard keeps stressing the same thing: the team needs him healthy, and it needs more than talk if it is going to move forward.
For a Pelicans group looking to build toward a postseason push, Murrays role goes beyond scoring or creating offense. The expectation is that his experience and leadership help steady the locker room while he works back toward full strength, and his message has been clear enough even through the setbacks - the focus now is on doing the work and being available when it matters most. [Read more 🡒]
Zion Could Be The Key To A More Dangerous Pelicans Offense
Early signs from training camp suggest Jamahl Mosley is pushing Zion Williamson to broaden what the Pelicans can do on offense, with an emphasis on a midrange game that could make New Orleans much harder to guard. The idea is simple enough: if Williamson becomes more comfortable operating from the middle of the floor, defenses have to respect more than just the rim, and that can free up cleaner driving lanes and better looks for teammates on the perimeter.
Trey Murphy III stands to benefit as much as anyone, and the two have already been spending time together on perimeter shooting drills and two-man game work during practice. For a Pelicans team trying to unlock another layer of spacing and ball movement, the early camp work hints at a more versatile attack, even if the most important pieces are still being put in place. [Read more 🡒]