The New Orleans Pelicans’ start has been frustrating, no doubt about it. But buried inside the uneven results are a few signs that this team is at least finding pieces that can work.
One of the clearest bright spots has been Saddiq Bey. He was already one of the team’s most reliable players last season, and he’s kept that going early this year.
Through the first stretch, Bey is averaging 15.7 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.3 assists while shooting 50.0/43.8/83.3. He has also been closing games over the last two nights in place of Jeremiah Fears.
Even with that, he still isn’t getting much of the late-game run he probably deserves. He was their best clutch performer a year ago, and he looks like he should have a bigger role right now.
Derik Queen is another encouraging development. Heading into the season, he was one of the bigger questions because of how he would fit with what Jamahl Mosley wants to do.
Instead, he’s looked strong coming off the bench. He’s still not a defensive enforcer, but the effort level has been better and he’s had some solid stretches.
Queen is putting up 13.0 points, 8.3 rebounds and 1.7 assists on 52.2/33.3/93.3 shooting. The playmaking piece has dipped a bit, and that’s something the team could stand to bring back more often.
Jordan Poole has been a little trickier to read. On paper, the scoring hasn’t been there - he’s 3-of-18 from the field - but his overall impact has still been positive.
He’s a team-best +16 so far, and the signs around him are better than the shot chart suggests. The defensive effort looks improved, his decision-making has been cleaner, and he’s done a good job setting up teammates.
Poole has 12 assists, which is second on the team, and outside of Murray, he’s been one of the few players consistently moving the ball.
The biggest team-wide positive has been the way the defense is creating turnovers. There are still issues, especially with how games have been finished, and that has taken some of the shine off the better stretches.
But some of what Mosley wants is already starting to show. The hands are active, the pressure is real, and the steals numbers back it up: Zion Williamson is second in the league with eight, and Dejounte Murray is tied for fourth with seven.
As a team, the Pelicans rank second in steals.
They are tied for 12th in blocks, though that number could become harder to sustain without Yves Missi. Still, even in a rough opening, there are enough encouraging signs here to suggest the season hasn’t been all doom and gloom.
In Other News...
Pelicans 0-3 Start Is Raising Bigger Questions Than Late-Game Execution
The first three games have left New Orleans with an 0-3 start, but the bigger concern is that the Pelicans have been competitive enough to make the losses sting. Late-game execution has been part of the conversation, yet the problems have spread wider than one possession here or there, with inconsistent clutch-time offense and a few key players not finding their rhythm. Dejounte Murray and Jordan Poole have both struggled with their shooting, which has made it harder for the Pelicans to turn decent stretches into wins.
Trey Murphys role in those crucial minutes has also become a point worth watching, especially after he was productive earlier against Denver before barely getting a look in the closing stretch. Add in the uncertainty around Bennedict Mathurins early fit and the teams issues with allowing second-chance points despite a respectable defensive rebound rate, and the picture is less about a bad finish than a roster still searching for the right answers. The Pelicans have shown enough to stay in games, but not enough yet to suggest the closing problems are the only thing holding them back. [Read more 🡒]
Pelicans Already Have A Herb Jones Problem They Cant Ignore
The Pelicans rough start has already exposed one of the seasons early questions: how to handle Herb Jones. New Orleans opened 0-3 while running into trouble in late-game defensive situations, and Jones, long valued as one of the clubs most reliable stoppers, has not been on the floor nearly as much as usual. For a player who has been a fixture in the rotation, the reduced role has stood out almost immediately.
Jones has spent the first three games in a very different spot than fans are used to seeing him, and the reasons appear tied to more than just defense. The Pelicans have also been searching for more offensive balance and cleaner spacing while their shooting has sputtered, which puts the staff in a tricky spot as it tries to find the right lineup mix without sacrificing what Jones typically brings. [Read more 🡒]
Saddiq Bey Is Forcing A Pelicans Rotation Decision Early
Saddiq Bey has wasted little time making the Pelicans think about the shape of their early-season rotation. Through New Orleans first three games, he has scored in double figures every night while doing it in fewer than 24 minutes per game, giving coach Jamahl Mosley a useful kind of problem for October: a wing who is producing efficiently without needing a featured role.
The bigger question is where those minutes come from, and the answer is not simple. Lineup combinations that include Bey, Bennedict Mathurin and Dejounte Murray are now part of the conversation, with the staff weighing how much offense the group can sustain and whether the defensive tradeoffs are worth it. Bey has done enough to earn a longer look, but the Pelicans still have to decide how aggressively to reshuffle the rotation to make room for him. [Read more 🡒]