The New Orleans Pelicans’ offseason additions haven’t exactly forced their way into the spotlight five games into the season, and that was always part of the concern with this group. New Orleans did not overhaul the roster, and the small batch of newcomers has only seen limited chances so far.
The most puzzling piece remains Bennedict Mathurin. The Pelicans brought in three new players, and Mathurin has already looked like the toughest fit of the bunch.
He’s still a capable 24-year-old with some upside, but the roster needs shooting and he hasn’t neatly filled that role. New Orleans is also pushing him to let it fly more often, and that shows in the volume: per 36 minutes, he’s at 6.7 threes per game.
His previous high was 5.3. Before being traded last year, he hit 37.2% of his threes on 5.6 attempts per game, and that’s the version the Pelicans would like to get back.
Trendon Watford, on the other hand, gave the team a jolt in his first action of the season Thursday night. He isn’t there to stretch the floor, but he does make sense as a depth option for nights like that.
Watford finished with eight points, two assists, one rebound and three steals in 17 minutes, and he was a +7. Jamahl Mosley had strong praise for him afterward, and Watford’s all-around game and steady presence clearly left an impression.
Mosley essentially framed him as the kind of player who represents the culture he wants around the team.
AJ Johnson’s path looks very different. The Pelicans have not used him yet, and there’s no sign that his NBA debut is coming soon.
On Friday, he was assigned to the G League, where he’ll at least get run with the Laketown Squadron. Johnson has shown flashes at that level early in his career, but he hasn’t put it together in the NBA.
He was a former first-round pick and is still only 21, but with New Orleans not picking up his option, this season now looks more like a long audition for his next stop.
In Other News...
Pelicans Just Sent A Confusing Signal On AJ Johnson
The Pelicans made a quick roster move with AJ Johnson on Friday night, recalling the young guard from the G League only hours after sending him down. It was the kind of transaction that can look routine on paper, but it also underscored how the team is still sorting out the best path for a player who remains in the early stages of his development.
Johnson has yet to appear for New Orleans this season, so every move around him carries a little more weight than it would for a more established rotation piece. For a team trying to balance immediate needs with long-term growth, the brief detour suggests the Pelicans are still evaluating how and when to use him, even if the answer is not clear just yet. [Read more 🡒]
Zion Trade Idea Forces An Uncomfortable Pelicans Conversation
A hypothetical Zion Williamson trade proposal from Bleacher Report has stirred up the kind of uncomfortable conversation the Pelicans can never quite avoid. Andy Bailey floated a deal that would send Williamson to Golden State, with the Warriors getting the offensive upside they have long coveted while New Orleans would be left weighing the value of a major roster reset against the reality of what Williamson still means to the franchise.
The appeal for the Pelicans is obvious enough: a chance to move off a massive long-term commitment and open up some financial flexibility. But any conversation around Williamson quickly circles back to the same issue, and this one is no different, because the trade idea is built around a player whose availability has always shaped the discussion as much as his talent has. It remains purely speculative, but it is the sort of proposal that forces New Orleans to confront where the line is between patience and practicality. [Read more 🡒]
Zion Williamson Is Giving The Pelicans A New Reason For Optimism
Five games into the season, Zion Williamson is giving the Pelicans a different kind of lift, and it is coming on the defensive end. The New Orleans forward has been active in the passing lanes, helping push the team to second in the league in steals per game, while head coach Jamahl Mosley has pointed to Williamsons defensive tenacity and the way the group is functioning within its system.
The recent win over Sacramento offered another glimpse of that energy, with Williamson coming away with five steals as New Orleans kept turning defense into momentum. For a player long judged mostly by what he does with the ball in his hands, the early-season shift is a meaningful one for the Pelicans, who suddenly have a new reason to believe their ceiling can rise if this edge on defense holds. [Read more 🡒]