A night after the New Orleans Pelicans left plenty to be worried about, Wednesday’s matchup with the Indiana Pacers offered something a lot more welcome: answers from the two young big men who had drawn the most skepticism.
That skepticism was real coming out of preseason, and both Derik Queen and Yves Missi had given plenty of reasons for it. But against Indiana, they looked like different players. Maybe the preseason really did mean less than it seemed.
Missi set the tone early and never let up. Right from the opening tip, he played with a level of juice that made it fair to wonder if he had been holding something back before. He opened with a huge putback dunk and kept rolling from there, finishing with 13 points, 14 rebounds, five assists, three blocks and two steals while going 5-of-6 from the field in 29 minutes.
For a player who had looked shaky on both ends in preseason, that was a major turnaround. Missi’s athleticism popped all night.
Even with the Pacers featuring a load at center in Ivica Zubac, he found ways to stay active, work into open space and punish slower movement. Offensively, he lived in the dunker spot, cashed in on second chances and stayed ready as a lob target.
He also showed better feel after offensive rebounds, looking to kick the ball back out before deciding whether to finish himself.
What stood out just as much was what he did on defense. Missi protected the rim, finished possessions with hard box-outs and looked comfortable switching his attention across ball-screen action. Against a big like Zu, the task is to get him moving toward the rim, and Missi did a strong job of taking that away.
Queen’s showing was just as notable, if for different reasons. After questioning whether he had fully bought into a smaller role, he played like a guy who understood exactly what was needed. In 18 minutes, he had 10 points, 10 rebounds, one assist and two steals, while turning it over only once and taking just four shots, making three of them.
That version of Queen was a sharp break from what was seen in 81 games last season and in four preseason outings earlier this month. He didn’t overhandle the ball, didn’t force passes and didn’t try to play cute.
He looked like a conventional big, doing damage inside and attacking the glass. That was the most striking part of his night.
He also brought real effort on defense. Queen moved his feet well on the perimeter, stayed controlled and avoided overreaching. Whether all of that can be pinned on the Jamahl Mosley effect is hard to say, but through every version of Queen that has been watched, including college, that level of defensive awareness has been hard to find.
If there’s a reason to be cautious, it’s that Queen is still the more likely of the two to drift back toward old habits. Missi’s performance looked like a clearer sign of who he can be. Queen’s path is trickier because of his style and the habits he’ll have to shed.
Still, the key for him is plain enough if the Pelicans want wins: keep the turnovers down and resist the urge to run the offense through himself. He did that against Indiana, and if that sticks, it could be an important step toward becoming a real winning piece this season.
In Other News...
Pelicans Let A Vulnerable Pacers Team Escape New Orleans
The Pelicans had a chance to put a vulnerable Indiana team in a tough spot early, and for stretches they did exactly that. New Orleans pushed the pace, put the Pacers on their heels in the second quarter and looked capable of turning the opener into a statement win before Indiana steadied itself and worked back into the game.
Tyrese Haliburton was right at the center of the response, giving the Pacers the kind of orchestration they needed in his first meaningful action in well over a year. He paired playmaking with scoring to keep Indiana connected, while the road team eventually found enough balance to escape New Orleans with a win and leave the Pelicans to wonder how a promising start slipped away. [Read more 🡒]
Pelicans Loss Still Revealed Something Fans Needed To See
A season opener that ends in a 123-120 loss can leave a team with a long list of what-ifs, but New Orleans still walked away with something worth keeping. Zion Williamson played with a level of conviction that had to stand out to anyone watching, finishing with 22 points and taking key shots late, while Dejounte Murray led the way with 23 points and a steady two-way impact that gave the Pelicans a real backbone for stretches of the night.
There were also encouraging signs deeper in the rotation, with Jeremiah Fears, Derik Queen and Yves Missi all turning in notable minutes against Indiana. The bigger takeaway for New Orleans is less about the final score and more about the way the offense looked with Williamson willing to assert himself when the game tightened, a development fans have been waiting to see carry over into meaningful moments. [Read more 🡒]
Pelicans Already Face A Derik Queen Decision They Can't Ignore
The season opener gave the Pelicans an early glimpse of what Derik Queen can bring, and why his role is already a talking point. Acquired with a first-round pick, the young big came off the bench against Indiana and produced 10 points and 10 rebounds in his first game, showing the kind of activity that can make him useful right away even as the team continues to sort out its rotation.
Jamahl Mosley also got a look at the rough edges that come with a player still learning the NBA pace. Queens evening included several mistakes, the kind that can quickly tighten a coachs trust in a close game, and New Orleans will have to decide how much room to give him while he works through them. The opportunity is there, but so is the pressure to turn flashes into something the Pelicans can rely on. [Read more 🡒]