Herb Jones remains stuck in a strangely limited spot for the New Orleans Pelicans, and Wednesday night did little to clear things up.
Through four games, Jones is down to a career-low 17.5 minutes per game. That’s a steep fall from his previous low of 28.4, and it stands out even more because of what he brings on the defensive end. He’s not starting, and he’s not closing, even though he remains one of the team’s best options when the Pelicans need stops.
That has only added to the frustration for fans who watched New Orleans give up late-game buckets to star guards early in the season, especially Tyrese Haliburton and Jamal Murray. With the wing defense not holding up and the guard play not doing enough, Jones being parked on the bench has felt hard to explain.
Before Wednesday’s loss, Jamahl Mosley at least sounded like someone who understood the issue. Asked by Oleh Kosel on Tuesday about Jones’ role, Mosley said:
"In this moment right now, Herb is the ultimate professional in where he is and finding more time for him is going to be a key priority for me. And I know that as a defensive coach, there’s no way for me to look around it.
We talked about doing things in a five-game sample size and seeing what it looks like and where it can be and what we can do, but again, high priority to make sure that we continue to see Herb on the floor more."
But the follow-through was minimal. Jones logged just 19 minutes on Wednesday and was pulled in the fourth quarter after his defense helped spark a push back into the game. Mosley said afterward that he was trying to get him back in, but the timing never quite lined up.
"I loved his aggression. I loved how he changed the game defensively for us.
I thought that was big. I was trying at the last moment; when we went on the run, I was gonna bump him back in.
And then [Derik Queen] got going downhill a couple of times, so it was a combination of trying to figure out when you get him back in the game, and by the time they had blown it up, I didn't want to bring him back in those moments."
The numbers back up the case for more Herb Jones. Entering Wednesday night, New Orleans was a +26.0 with him on the floor this season, according to Databallr. That’s a tiny sample, sure, but it fits the pattern from the last two years: +7.3 last season and +8.5 the year before.
So the coaches may be inching toward a change, and Mosley’s comments suggest they know what Jones brings. But for now, the minutes haven’t really moved, and the fan frustration makes sense. One game doesn’t settle it, but this version of the Pelicans is still leaving one of its best defensive weapons on the shelf too often.
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