The New Orleans Pelicans are heading into the 2026-27 season with more uncertainty than answers, and this offseason made that even clearer. After two straight years below 30 wins, plenty around the team expected major change. Instead, New Orleans largely stood pat and chose to see how things unfold before making a bigger move.
That approach came straight from executive vice president of basketball operations Joe Dumars, who told NOLA.com’s Rod Walker that the front office explored plenty of options without forcing anything. “We were engaged in a lot of conversations with a lot of different teams,” Dumars said.
“But at the end of the day, you’ve got to make a determination if this is the right deal or not. You don’t want to make a move for the sake of making a move.
It has to be right for us.”
That same logic has defined the Pelicans’ summer. To critics, a 26-win team should be trying almost anything to get better. New Orleans, though, appears to believe a change in direction is not always the same thing as a helpful one.
The biggest reason for optimism inside the building is new head coach Jamahl Mosley. The Pelicans are betting he can provide the kind of jolt he gave the Orlando Magic when he arrived in 2021.
Orlando had won 21 games the year before Mosley took over, then by his third season had won the division and reached the playoffs three years in a row. His reputation is built on defense, and that matters for a New Orleans team that still has plenty of room to improve on that end.
The roster does have talent. Zion Williamson, Trey Murphy III, Dejounte Murray, Herb Jones and others give the Pelicans pieces worth building around.
But the problem has been getting that group on the floor together. Injuries have taken a heavy toll in recent seasons.
Williamson’s availability has long been the central issue; he has played more than 30 games only three times in his career. Jones has missed 88 games over the last two seasons.
Murray came back last season after a ruptured Achilles tendon, and Murphy III has also dealt with nagging injuries. In a sense, New Orleans seems to be waiting to see what this group looks like when it’s actually healthy.
The trouble is that this is the same kind of hope the previous regime leaned on.
The Pelicans also have the reality of their market working against them. New Orleans is not a place where big-name free agents typically land, which leaves the draft and trades as the main paths to roster upgrades.
That has shaped the core they have now. Williamson, Murphy III, Jones, Jeremiah Fears and Derik Queen all came through the draft.
Murray, Saddiq Bey and Jordan Poole arrived via trade. The biggest offseason addition was Bennedict Mathurin, who signed a two-year deal with New Orleans.
His second season is a player option, which gives him the chance to reach free agency sooner next summer if he chooses.
For a small-market franchise that does not appear eager to push into the luxury tax, every move carries extra weight. Last offseason drew plenty of scrutiny when the Pelicans traded an unprotected first-round pick to move up and acquire Derik Queen.
If that kind of swing misses, it can haunt a team for years. Dumars clearly did not want to take that kind of risk this summer.
“The lack of moves being made right now is not from a lack of effort or us deciding we didn’t want to do anything. We’ve engaged with a lot of teams this offseason. But there was just no big deal that I felt was going to make us better for us to pull the trigger on.”
What happens next will depend on how this season goes. Jordan Poole’s $30-plus million expiring contract is the most obvious candidate to move before the deadline. Herb Jones has also become a popular name in trade speculation, and with younger, cheaper players on the roster, he could be a realistic piece to deal if the Pelicans decide to pivot.
For now, Mosley gets a feel-out year with one of the youngest rosters in the league. But the larger picture is hard to miss: New Orleans seems committed to playing the financial side carefully, even if that means the on-court results stay stuck where they are.
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The pressure points are easy to spot. Watford still needs to tighten up his rebounding and become more consistent from three-point range, and those are the kinds of details that matter when roster spots and minutes are up for grabs. His partially guaranteed deal means nothing is settled yet, so camp will be more than a tune-up for him. It is a battle for security, one he has to win before the Pelicans can count on him as anything more than a candidate. [Read more 🡒]