This series was started in large part because of Dell and Monty’s comments last October. They both stated that the plan was to add the final pieces to the puzzle in the 2013 offseason and then move forward with that team for the next few years. Flash forward seven months and we are almost there. In those seven months, Dell has confirmed that the plan was still on track and that the Pelicans had a plan A,B,C,D, and E for this offseason. With the combine having just completed and the draft lottery just three days away, I will try to piece together the clues Dell left behind in on-the-record conversations, Chalk Talks, as well as off-the-record comments we have gathered from other high-ups to decipher the Pelicans offseason plans.
Plan A – Going All-in on Chris Paul
The Strategy: Trade Robin Lopez to Jazz for the 21st pick, draft Jeff Withey. Draft Shabazz Muhammad with own pick. Trade Greivis Vasquez for Lance Stephenson and 2014 1st rounder. Sign Chris Paul to 4 year/79.6 million dollar deal. Sign Earl Clark with exemption.
Depth Chart:
CP3/Rivers/Roberts
EG/Stephenson
Clark/Muhammad/Miller
Ryno/Smith
AD/Withey
In recent days I have become more skeptical of this scenario than I was when I wrote this article, mostly due to some information that is being passed around NBA circles. Long story short, multiple doctors have given a timetable of 1-2 years before Chris Paul’s knee is completely shot. Not only would this worry the Pelicans, but it probably worries Chris Paul’s agent, and all of a sudden that 5th year that only the Clippers can give him seems a lot more enticing. My theory has always been that since there is only a $6 million dollar difference in the first 4 years of the max contract the Clippers can give him (compared to the Pelicans), that money wouldn’t be an issue. But if the doctors are right, this might be CP3’s last major contract, and in that case he has to take the extra year.
But CP3, like most athletes, believes he is the exception rather than the rule, so it is possible that he believes he will be able to stay at an elite level regardless of wear and tear on his body. If that is the case, the Pelicans can lure him back to a city he loves to play for a coach he respects and a roster that can take the pressure off him so he doesn’t have to do everything. Muhammad is a perfect fit with CP3, as he does most of his scoring coming off of screens and pin downs. A guy like Earl Clark could be a D and Three wing who holds down the position until Muhammad is ready and Lance Stephenson gives the Pelicans some toughness off the bench that can spot start if/when Eric Gordon gets injured.
Plan B – Go Big and Don’t Go Home (Early in the Playoffs)
The Strategy: Use the majority of free agent monty on an upgrade at Center to put next to Anthony Davis. Then use other assets (GV, Lopez, pick, exemptions) to upgrade the wings and/or point guard position.
Depth Chart
Bledsoe(or Jennings)/ Roberts
Gordon/Rivers
Budinger/Aminu/Miller
AD/Ryno
Pekovic (or Jefferson)/Smith
Monty has remained firm in his philosophy that Davis is best suited to play the power forward position at this stage of his career. While Robin Lopez outperformed his contract last year, he was horrible in pick and roll defense and his post offense is average at best. Putting a top-10 center like Pekovic or Jefferson next to Davis could take the defensive focus off of him and allow him to roam free. Lopez’s inability to rebound on the defensive end also put too much pressure on Davis the other end, and both Pekovic and Jefferson provide significant upgrades.
Jefferson is an unrestricted free agent and the Pelicans can sign him outright, though there should be several suitors for his services. Pekovic is a restricted free agent, but the Timberwolves might prefer Lopez at $5 million to Pekovic at $13 million seeing that they are paying Love and will have to pay Rubio big money soon. In either case, money and assets will still be available to upgrade at point guard and small forward.
Plan C – Wings, Wings, Wings
The Strategy: The Pelicans allow Lopez and Vasquez to hold down the point guard and center positions for one more year, with the idea that Rivers and Davis can take over those positions full-time in 2014. In the meantime, they load up on wings in the offseason and maintain flexibility and some cap space for next summer.
Depth Chart
Vasquez/Rivers/Roberts
Gordon/Oladipo
Webster/Brewer/Miller
AD/Ryno
Lopez/Smith
Perimeter play was a nightmare for New Orleans last season, and one way or another this has to be addressed this summer. The only elite wing player on the market in Andre Iguodala, but he will probably get a contract in the $14-$16 million range. Instead, the Pelicans address their perimeter needs by going after multiple players with unique skill sets that could make their offensive and defensive attacks versatile. Shooting is sorely needed, so Martell Webster, Kyle Korver, and Chase Budinger should all be targets this summer. Also, Monty and Dell will want a wing defender who can cover multiple positions, so Corey Brewer and Gerald Henderson will be intriguing in free agency and Victor Oladipo or Ben McLemore could be fits in the draft.
This plan allows the Pelicans to be competative now while simoultaneously assessing players like Vasquez, Gordon, Lopez, and Rivers to see if they are long term pieces to the puzzle.
Plan D – Ryno and Lopez Part II
The Strategy: Dell targets guys this summer who are undervalued around the league, adding assets to set up a future blockbuster trade for a star.
Depth Chart
Vasquez/Rivers/Roberts
Gordon/Gerald Henderson
Chase Budinger/Devin Ebanks/Miller
AD/Ryno/Bennett
Lopez/Brandan Wright/Smith
Gerald Henderson is the player I would bet on becoming the biggest value of this free agent class if I had to pick just one guy. He has been stuck in Charlotte his whole career and has steadily improved every aspect of his game since coming into the league. Give the guy a steady foundation with one coach that he can learn from (as opposed to a revolving door) and he can take off. Dell can add Henderson, Chase Budinger, and PER All-Star Brandan Wright for the same price that it would cost to land one major fish. All three guys will be 25 years old next season and still have considerable room to grow. Throw in Devin Ebanks, a guy who has shown flashes in his brief NBA career, and Dell has quite a collection of assets.
Armed with a roster that goes 14 deep, Dell could be patient and wait for the right deal to present itself. The beauty of having a roster this deep and flexible is that Dell could make a 3 for 1 or even a 4 for 1 trade and still have enough bodies left standing to surround a star studded core.
Plan E – Waiting for 2014
The Strategy: If Dell misses out on all his main targets, he would be foolish to pull a Joe Dumars. Instead, he could just fill the roster with some quality vets who can help the locker room and allow Monty to give major minutes to young guys for one more year.
Depth Chart
Vasquez/Rivers/Roberts
Gordon/Oladipo/Mason
Dorrell Wright/Aminu/Miller
AD/Ryno
Lopez/Smith/Amundson
Most Pelicans fans would be hugely disappointed if the roster looked like this on opening day, but it beats throwing huge deals at average players. While this team won’t compete for playoff spots, it has a couple of built in advantages. For starters, it would be nearly $10 million dollars below the salary cap, which would put the Pelicans in prime position to take on a contract that another team wants to shed and be compensated with draft picks for their troubles. This is what the Cleveland Cavaliers have been doing for two years now, and their war chest is completely stocked.
It also puts them in prime position to land a marquee free agent in 2014. If Anthony Davis goes out and has an All-NBA season, New Orleans could become a prime destination for NBA players. Patience isn’t sexy, but it beats desperation if all else fails. And worse case scenario, the Pelicans are bad for one more year and secure a top pick in the most loaded draft since 2003.
The Curveball – Eric Gordon Gets Traded
The Strategy: It would be a miracle to get a young player on a quality contract for Gordon, and that miracle will likely not be answered this offseason. If the Pelicans do get offers for Gordon, they will likely be deals that look like pennies on the dollar on the surface, but if Dell wants to rid himself of the headache, he just might take whatever he can get.
Depth Chart A
Jennings/Rivers/Roberts
G. Henderson/Oladipo
Deng/Aminu/Miller
AD/Ryno
Lopez/Smith
In this scenario, Eric Gordon goes to the Bulls straight up for Luol Deng. It’s big risk, big reward for the Bulls, as they pair Derrick Rose with his AAU teammate and friend Eric Gordon. Now they have two guards with injury issues, but if they can ever get them both healthy, they would have the best backcourt in the NBA by a mile and a team that could legitimately defeat the Heat. The Pelicans, meanwhile, shed Eric Gordon and give themselves a quasi All-Star who is great in the locker room. After the trade, they reinforce the perimeter by sending Vasquez to Milwaukee in a sign and trade for Jennings, drafting Oladipo and signing Gerald Henderson. And in the event they don’t see Deng as a long term piece, the Pelicans could re-sign Aminu, who could learn under Deng for a year before Deng hits the market and the Pelicans have another $15 million to spend on the FA class of 2014.
Depth Chart B
Bledsoe/Rivers/Roberts
K. Martin/Oladipo
Brewer/Aminu/Miller
AD/Ryno
Jordan/Smith
This scenario involves the Gordon and Lopez for Jordan and Bledsoe blockbuster that has been rumored to been discussed amongst Clippers FO personnel. After the trade, the Pelicans draft Oladipo to be the future at the two and/or the three and then sign Kevin Martin and Corey Brewer to help jump start the perimeter attack. This lineup has enough length and quickness to turn the Pelicans into an elite defensive team, and plenty of upside on the offensive end as well.
The Missing Piece is a weekly feature that can be found every Saturday only on BourbonStShots.com. Past issues in the series can be found by clicking here.
131 responses to “The Missing Piece: Offseason Plans A-E for the New Orleans Pelicans”
Some of these “plans” was cool but I didn’t see a “plan” where we draft Burke and lets say trade way a pick and player to get back in the draft for player “shabazz” now I know that would be a LONGSHOT and CAN’T happen but that would be sweet
KingJewelz
I would like to see if we can trade back up to take a Oladipo if he falls. And I would be willing to trade anybody not named Davis to do so. This teams need a lot of young talent especially self motivated guys like Burke and Oladipo.
Michael,
I think the Pelican’s biggest need is a young PG and, since there are a number of very good options in this draft, it’s a match made in heaven. (We’ve got three different flavors to choose from: Burke, McCollum, and Carter-Williams.) For me, the only other option is the Bledsoe/Jordan for Gordon/Lopez, which the Pelicans definitely want to do if they think they can draft McLemore or Oladipo. I’d never acquire CP3 or Jennings.
Young PG now also fits because the Pelican’s have plenty of (younger especially) FA and RFA options at the other positions of need, SF and C, if they like the value and can sign them. None of the draft options at C and SF are starter ready to me. (In addition, Noel is a thinner, injured, Davis-like PF, and we are loaded at PF.)
So I’ll take, in order, your B (without Jennings), our Curveball B (probably without Kevin Martin), your C (with a drafted PG over Oladipo), your D (with a drafted PG. I don’t see who you drafted there.), and your E (with a drafted PG over Oladipo).
P.S. To All: Remember, we don’t have to spend all of our cap money this off season. As Michael points out, the Cleveland model (keep cap space to trade for great picks and short contract overpaid vets) has worked out great for them.
dont leave larkin out of the pg discussion….maybe as a later pick… especially if we dont get burke!
Cubancaniac
I have no problem with Larkin being in the discussion. I like him, too. I just listed the guys likely to go around 6. Larkin will go later, but so did Rondo (21st) and that worked out just fine
504ever The only point that I think would be worth our time in this draft is Dennis Schroder later in the first round because we can have him play overseas next year so he would not take a roster spot and we could still have a veteran point start for us for the next couple of years. I think Schroder would be a great fit with the Pelicans because of his blazing speed and his enormous wingspan. His enormous potential defensively is exactly what Dell would want late in the first round. As for the other point guards the best fit would be MCW but he would only be worth it if he fell out of the lottery because of his clear offensive limitations
I really don’t understand how you don’t have Trey Burke as an potential options but you continue to make Brandon Jennings as one. I much rather have Trey in every area over Jennings. Better leader, ball handler, distributor, better shooter, and his contract would be insanely better. Not to mention I strongly believe Burke will be a better defender than Jennings(which isn’t really that hard).
Jennings is horrible and if we spend over $8 mill on him it would be the worst front office decision since the dumbass Walrus gave Posey that ridiculous contract to kill the Paul/Chandler/West era.
daThRONe the Pelicans would rather Jennings because he is already a much better defensive player than Burke and he still has room to grow defensively. Also he is using our pick on Oladipo in nearly every case so there would be no way to acquire Burke unless we were to pick up a second first rounder in the top 7 but do you really want to have 2 rookie in the backcourt? that would be a nightmare for the coaching staff and it is extremely unlikely. Burke will never be the defender that Oladipo is already which is why they would undoubtedly go with Oladipo every single time. I agree I’m not a huge fan of Jennings but the guy is only 23. You can still expect progression over the next couple of years and I think his current skillset is already worth between 8-9 million
Hank_ daThRONe
How do you know he’s a better defender? Burke has played great defense in stretches. The problem with him (Trey even admitted both he and some GM’s have said as much) is consistency on that end of the court.
IF we secure a top-3 pick in the lottery, how about trading Vasquez + Lopez + 2014 1st Rd pick for Bledsoe + Clippers’ 2014 1st (the pick isn’t necessary) AND trade Gordon for Deng straight up? Then draft Oladipo with our pick and sign free agents like Corey Brewer and Samuel Dalembert.
A starting lineup of Bledsoe/Oladipo/Deng/Davis/Dalembert would be top-3 in the league defensively, and with Bledsoe,Oladipo, and Davis all under 23yrs old, they still have so much room to grow.
Bench would look like Anderson/Smith/Brewer/Rivers/Roberts
A lot of IFs in this scenario, but it’s definitely possible!
I could live with that
eMariii123
Cause Bledsoe isn’t worth all that, the pick swap in the loaded class of 2014 is the killer, and Deng is a 8 year vet with an average PER who will get paid an average of $16M for the next two years. If you can trade Gordon+ for Bledsoe+, you can sign Brewer for much less than Deng, be a younger team than your scenario, and still keep assets like Vasquez and the 2014 pick.
I am a long time dedicated STH for the Pelicans and I attended 2 Chalk Talks this past season, and try to listen to most of Dell and Monty’s interviews. Based on the information I have heard, Dell is going all in this summer. He’s not interested in saving cap space, or waiting on another draft in 2014 before trying to win. They like the young core they have in place now and they are ready to take the next step forward with quality vets who can be had on long term deals. As far as Monty, its clear that he wants a 5 who can post and is big. He doesn’t mind playing AD at center, but not primarily. Also, the success of MEM right now will be even more of a validation that 2 bigs can still win big in this league.
With that said, I think Plan B is the goal this summer. I think its a 90% chance we go hard after Pek or Jefferson with contracts of no less than $10m/year. Jefferson sounds like the more sure guy considering he’s an UFA and we can pay what anyone else can, but we offer a chance for him to get the touches he likes in the post in this system, plus giving him the shot at being close to home to end his career (he’s from Mississippi). I could also see the trade of Lopez for Pek making sense as well though. AD and Anderson are not going anywhere for the long haul so the PF spot is locked up. The other 3 positions are question marks if you ask me. As far as draft, I think Olapido is the guy Dell wants most no matter what our roster looks like. Also, dont be shocked if Rivers and Roberts are here behind another PG not being mentioned, thats Mr. Jack. He and Monty have a very close relationship and Jack brings the leadership qualities this team lacks, not to mention he has been amazing this post season. The above moves leave 1 position left, and thats SF. Thats where a trade of Gordon and GV/Lopez comes into play, to get us a quasi all star SF. The obvious options are Deng and Granger. I think Deng is a better fit but Dell wont pull that trigger on a 1 year guy who will most likely bail after that season. Granger, 2014 1st or Stepehenson makes more sense for Gordon + GV. Granger too is on the final year of his deal but he’ll be back home so the odds of keeping him longer is high. Another sleeper SF option to watch for is w BOS for Jeff Green + Courtney Lee.
My most likely team for 2013-2014: Jack/Rivers/Roberts…..Oladipo/Stephenson……Granger/Aminu/Miller…….AD/Anderson…….Jefferson/Smith. (Plus move Lopez for a mid-late 1st round pick this season to add another young guy Dell likes, i.e. Dario Saric)
Who’s to say they don’t go after JJ Hickson JJ reddick Paul milsap or trade for Bledsoe or Jennings
Man, I hope the Pelicans take Burke, because it looks like our fan base will go insane if we don’t get him, but honestly I think Kobe has as much of a chance of being a Pelican next year as Trey Burke. Unless Monty and Dell have been lying to us for nearly a year now about what they want to add to this team in order to set up the biggest smokescreen in the world, I just can’t see it.
Remember – this article is titled New Orleans Pelicans plans, not Michael McNamara’s plans. I take the info I gather and put it back out. Personally, I wouldn’t mind Burke at all. Not my favorite, but I got him at 5 or 6 on my big board, so I wouldn’t be disappointed either. But it’s not going to happen, I am sorry to crush the dream. Actually, just keep the dream for another six weeks if you want, what’s the harm? It doesn’t bother me either way, but I feel my job is to get the facts back to you and sometimes speculate about the future based on those facts and some whispers.
I just hope you guys let Burke go after the draft and give all the love to Oladipo or whomever the pick is and move forward. Until then, keep hope alive!
Michael McNamara Well said MM. You are 100% correct, we would trade the pick before taking Burke. I dont think people pay attention to what winning means and how Dell and Monty plan to do it. After 2 terrible seasons, the last thing you want to do is bring in a rookie PG to run the team when you are trying to turn things around starting NOW, not starting in 3 years. Rookie PG is not an option…..period!
Man Damon was a rookie running the pg spot for Portland and did pretty good!! So to say it won’t work is Krazy!..
KingJewelz He was horrible defensively. Again, you gotta put yourself in the mind of Dell and Monty. They had a point guard who put up numbers offensively, but got burned over and over defensively. They don’t want a slightly better version of that. Put it this way, while most fans wouldn’t take Mike Conley over Damian Lillard, Dell and Monty would 100 out of 100 times. That is the kind of PG they want, not the slightly below average defenisvely, deep shooting, high scoring, ball dominant PG that fans seem to crave .
But that is the kind of mind set that would get them fired tho and as much as I love dell and Monty for the jobs that they done I think mr.benson wants to win and he wants a packed house at that and I would say every time mr benson talks he is telling Monty that he gotta get a hell of a game going. I understand all of your points and respect all your work I think if they draft oladipo and try Gordon at the point it will fail only because Eric does want to be here and he would feel like his time is up with that pick which can it weird for the players..they have to look at other things besides being defense player..their is no leader on this team and that is what makes Burke the guy in my book his leadership his fire to prove everybody wrong that is wha this team is sorely missing
KingJewelz You dont have to convince me, I dont make the decisions. Convince Dell and Monty. They see the game differently it appears. They don’t care about entertainment, they care about winning and they believe you build a winning team with defense. Not so-so defense, elite defense, and that starts with your perimeter defenders.
They also believe veterans lead the way, not 20 year olds. They will find a leader this offseason, and it will be a young vet, not a rookie IMO.
So true I like Burke thats just me tho as a fan but to monty and dell do i dont know for sure but i would not have a problem with them picking oladipo if they feel that is their guy only if they can address the point guard spot with a player like you said they like in Brandon Jennings. but who is to say that will happen tho..hard to see the bucks not matching offers for him but if we where to get him I can live with that and would be happy with that
I feel what your saying I just rather have Burke but I would show love to who ever we get but if oladipo is the pick then EG would have to go as far as I see
If oladiipo is the pick I would hope they go after Bledsoe or Jennings as well
Michael McNamara I’m a New Orleans Pelicans fan and I don’t want Trey Burke on the roster.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Monty and Dell bring in an unknown guy and he has a sizable impact similar to Vasquez and Lopez. Hoping for Oladipo!
If Chris Paul agreed to come here, wouldn’t it have to be on a sign and trade so that he could get his max deal and the Clippers could get something back in return (a’la Lebron and Cavs)?
My point is that signing CP3 would likely strip us of our extra assets such as Lopez or Vasquez and our pick as well. Is this not accurate?
MikeStanley1 It’s possible that it could go down this way, but teams getting the player in the S&T rarely give up big assets. Miami gave up late 1sts for Bosh and James, for instance. If Clippers did this, it would be for the Trade Exemption, not for pieces back. This only happens once a player says they are going to the new city regardless and the other team would rather get something (TPE, future 1st) than nothing.
If you are saying they have no interest in Trey Burke whatsoever I have a hard time believing they would have interest in Jennings. Who may not be short but body mass is undersized and while he has some quickness it isn’t displayed on defense. We have a lot of guys in this league that are laterally quick, but are poor defenders, likewise we have seen guys who are aren’t really quick be great defensive players.
You compare Burke to Quinn but his combine numbers are slightly worse or better than Chris Paul. I know how it’s unfair to compare guys to current great players. However the last player I’ve seen control a team like Paul is Burke. If Demps and Williams are willing to pass on a guy because he isn’t the ideal player than they should be fired. You have to adjust on the fly to the talent you have access to.
daThRONe Dell has like Jennings for a few seasons, primarily because of the way he pressured the ball back when Scott Skiles was the coach. Jennings would pressure from 3/4’s court in and created havoc in that system. In the three seasons prior to this one, the Bucks ranked 5th, 6th, and 5th in defensive turnover percentage, in large part due to Jennings on ball defense and pressure.
Again, I don’t love Jennings neccessarily, but you and I aren’t the general managers. We can say what we would do all we want, but that is a different conversation that trying to predict what Dell will do. My track record in predicting Dell’s moves is pretty good because I remove my wants from the equation and try to think like Dell. These are the reasons Dell like Jennings and Bledsoe.
Michael McNamara daThRONe
That’s fine and I understand the premise of this article. Thinking like Dell Demps based on the info he has given as our GM. However my point is I strongly disagree with that line of thinking. Which isn’t a 1st as far Demps is concern.
I’ve watched almost all of Burke’s game over his collegiate career(especially this year) his growth from last year to this year was tremendous. To watch one person be that important to his team success speaks volumes. When you consider he’s game translate well with space even if he doesn’t improve I see an impact player tomorrow in the NBA. If my FO people see it different so be it. However I foresee a lot of GM’s losing their jobs for passing on this kid and a lot of hindsight from fan bases.
The beauty of the pelicans offseason is that they have sooo many different things they can explore to make this team better! We can all agree to that!! WE disagree with players to get BUT WE can all AGREE that their is NOTHING better that PELICANS Basketball!!
I think we should just add a few veterans and have young guys backing them up. I specifically like the Gordon for Deng trade and then having Aminu back up Deng for a year.
Honestly, I don’t want CP3 back especially after hearing that he probably has only 1-2 years left. We need to trade Gordon and build this team around Davis so that it can be a force for many years to come.
You keep hearing bout CP3 coming back home, but why not target the best pg in the draft who is similar to cp3 style of play. With that said you save money to target big free agent or agents in fa to add to the team. Also if you find a trading partner for Gordon that also frees up cap and maybe get a pick for him to get back in the first round and take shabazz or Anotha player of need. With that you hot younger with Burke, Davis, shabazz or other, (jj hickson or josh smith in free agency) & rivers. You can deny the immediate impact!!!
Chamilltheking If people think Burke will be similar to CP3, they will be sorely disappointed. It’s not fair to the kid, either. Terrell Brandon would be fair, and I think Burke will have a hard time even getting to that level. As for the claim that he is the best PG in the draft, I tend to agree but my bet is that when this process is all over with, the Pelicans will have Michael Carter-Williams ranked higher because of what they are looking for at the lead guard position. But it won’t matter, because I truly believe the last thing Dell or Monty want is a 20 year old running this team.
Michael McNamara Chamilltheking First off I didn’t say his skill set is of CP3 I said his style of play that he believes he is the best on the court and plays with a chip on his shoulder cause ppl doubt him, With that said he will come into the game unlike Carter with something to prove which delivers more DRIVE for success. To reply to your 20 year old running the team tell me if I’m wrong but wasn’t it Monty Williams and Demps who put ANOTHA 20 year old who DIDN’T PLAY THE POSITION to be the PG and RUN the team, his name was Austin Rivers to be exact, So they did believe at ONCE that they can take a chance on a ROOKIE 20 year old to run the team. So I truly trust what Burke can bring to the table and he CAN MAKE THE OTHER PLAYERS AROUND HIM BETTER can you say that bout Carter? Burke took a team of OK PLAYERS, YES OKAY (including Hardaway Jr.) to a Championship and made an IMPACT in that game with Little time played. So you ask yourself this if you continue to just get DEFENSE and cant SCORE how good TRULY is your team and how much SUCCESS do you see them having?
Chamilltheking Michael McNamara Again, you don’t have to convince me. Convince Monty and Dell. To your point, however, I will say that if they hadn’t drafted Rivers last year, I do think Burke would be more of a possibility. But when you take all their comments, the roster that we currently have, and their desire to start really winning next year, that just doesn’t add up to them taking any point guard, including Burke.
I’m not an advocate, I am just the messenger. No matter how bad we want this or that, Dell and Monty have a philosophy and they will stick to it. But maybe if all of the Burke lovers get together and start a petition like the Tebow fans did in Jacksonville, they will change their mind. It’s worth a try I suppose
Michael McNamara Chamilltheking
Defense is an issue so I also think they lean to MCW if they do decide to go PG. Wish we could have seen Len at the combine to understand how athletic he really is. I think its Oladipo if we don’t trade back b/c we need someone who can defend a teams best player and runs the court like a cat.
Michael McNamara Chamilltheking
Michael,
I can’t believe you are saying you think Monty and Dell believe our answer at PG, especially defensively, is on the roster and named Rivers. Rivers has not shown he can guard the at least the top half of starting PGs in the league. Both Vasquez and Rivers are “combo guards: PG/SG”. Neither can play PG defensively, and this was one of, if not the number one, problem on the team last year: perimeter defense from the PG position. (The Pelican management isn’t blind.)
I am not saying we draft Burke. I am saying there are three (four if you consider trading down and Larkin) different high quality flavors of PG available in this draft. Unless we can acquire a veteran who is the long term answer at PG (the only one I like is Bledsoe), then we have to draft a PG in my opinion.
As far as BPA goes, there is not that much difference between Burke, Olidapo, McCollum, and Carter-Williams. Teams could easily and legitimately rank them differently. So, if the Pelican’s pick 4th (or possibly 3rd)-8th there are a lot of options, especially PG options.
It’s nice to say Monty and Dell want to win now based on their public statements, but what do you want them to say? “Fans, we will be below average to average next year because that is part of the best and strongest way to build for the future!” No GM or coach will ever say that.
The goal is still to build around the young core we have with Davis as the centerpiece. If the PG of the future is in this draft you take him regardless of who you have on the roster, and you don’t worry about how young he is. He will likely be the same age or older than Rivers, and there are still huge questions about Rivers position (PG or SG) and team (starter or reserve).
Again here is some missing pieces fa ya!!! Looking at the west conf. Next year looks like its safe to say that the lower seeds is up for grabs. Now do you really have to make a huge splash to get get to the higher seeds, reality is the pelicans won’t be the good to get that high. Now look at this team as two more seasons to have a shot at being a REAL contender in the west. I believe with the addition of BURKE will bring a swag to this team that can get them to the post season with the players we have and maybe addition of some in free agency, but not DEEP into the playoffs!! But give are take a good free agency with addition of possible jj hickson, a Evan turner from like a e Gordon trade, or josh smith (long shot I kno) will set this team up for success come next draft!!!
Plan E would make me incredibly depressed
have to say I like the trade with EG and depth chart A. or Plan B
Much more athletic with Henderson and Oliadipo at SG and Jennings and Rivers at PG. Deng and aminu is a nice balance.
I do wonder where the 2013 Draft Pick goes in “Plan D”. Other questions…
“Plan C” – It appears this plan may have difficulties reaching the salary floor.
“Plan B” – Assuming Jennings and Jefferson, I believe the salary cap could come into play depending on which moves are done in what order.
I personally do not see much from All Jefferson to entice Monty and Dell. While he is extremely efficient on the left block his defense is atrocious. Jennings/Jefferson defending the PnR could be even worse than Vasquez/Lopez.
Do you believe Oladipo would be the Pelican selection if McLemore is available? I assume most of these plans operate with the Pelicans selecting fifth or sixth.
you need another plan those are all horrible in my opinion
why not this deal…..
if the hornets win the lottery or have a chance to draft noel…do it…davis wouldnt have to play center and they would be a dynamic bigmen in the league….wait another year to see if you could pair them with wiggins or jabri parker….greatness does not happen overnight another year wouldnt hurt for either of those guys
if not
trade pick #5 for eric bledsoe straight up…he is better than any prospect in this draft with experience and only 23….
that leaves vasquez and eric gordon to be moved…..u trade gordon for demar derozan and bargani who they have been trying to move…. the raptors would have to say yes they would have lowry gordon and rudy gay….phenomenal trade for both sides….
you could keep vasquez or trade him while his stock is high….i say to the denver nuggets for wilson chandler and throw them robin lopez in the deal too
bledsoe roberts rivers
derozan rivers mason
chandler aminu (or sign budinger) miller
davis anderson smith
bargani smith anderson
fast break
shooting type defense team with exception to bargani….but he spreads the floor for bledsoe derozan chandler and davis….imagine having two big men who can shoot the three proficent….ryan anderson showed us how useful that could be last year…..better deal then the blog in my opinion what u think?
If Demps and Williams want to win now we will mostly be a lotto teams for years to come. Rebuilding take time and careful planning. Rushed rebuilds lead to overpaid vet’s. No veteran will come to a unproven small market team unless they are paid beyond market value. We’ve been down this road before with much more proven players.
daThRONe Unfortunately I think that Benson’s age coupled with his hatred of losing money makes this inevitable. He’s an old school businessman and I doubt he’s willing to subsidize a long-term rebuild to the extent that would be needed for us to see this thing out the way that the truly patient and long-term fans would like.
MikeStanley1 daThRONe
If this is the case and there’s a good chance it is expect to be a middle of the pack play-off team (at best) for the foreseeable future.
daThRONe MikeStanley1 I’m sorry but this is very presumptive. So long as you get players who are worth more than their contract, your heading into the right direction. What that means (worthiness of a contract) is entirely up to you. But thinking that “rushed rebuilds” lead to “overpaid vets” is a lazy assumption.
Rebuilding can be done a number of ways, but the single most important thing is that you find someone to build around first. We found that (maybe you don’t think that since Davis is just your 9th best prospect) in Davis. Anderson is one (who’s worth more than his contract, IMO).
Dell has shown the ability to sign players to favorable contracts (Jason Smith, Ayon, Roberts, Anderson, Lopez). I’m confident he can do the same thing this offseason.
Yes, signing “old vets” usually means bad things (locked in contracts with little hope for improvement). The same cannot be said for “young vets”. If for example Dell went with Plan D and signed Budinger, Henderson and Wright to favorable contracts amounting to around 10 annually, that would be a huge boon for us. Now we have a group not to different from Denver’s team — athletic and young.
Rebuilding patiently requires an astute and savvy front office (something I think Dell and Monty are) and an insane amount of luck (not to dissimilar to how hitting on free agents can be bad). The number of teams that rebuilt exclusively through the draft are few. OKC is the only team I can think of right now. Spurs were built through trades/drafts and free agents.
I can understand signing free agents so long as they are worth their contracts. I’m impartial to whether we should acquire another high lotto pick. I’m not ok with trading draft picks. Demps will do the first, no idea on the second (although signs seem to point otherwise), third is still open for discussion depending on where we pick.
nicobaguio daThRONe MikeStanley1
It’s not a lazy assumption it’s a generalization based on history. I can’t think of one small market team that have benefit from free agency to turn into a title contender in a season or two.
I don’t think Davis is a player you can build a championship team around. Either you believe he is or not. However even if we assume he is he won’t do it by himself. Anderson is a good player on par with his contract. He’s more of a one trick pony that can’t consistently create his on offense. These two create problems because neither are great post defenders and really play the same position.
All the players Dell have signed are role players. Signing quality role players to good contracts won’t be what makes this team title contenders.
If we go “Plan B” and sign any of those players we have to offer something all other teams won’t or can’t. And even if we do there’s no guarantees those guys are anything but role players. If they don’t produce at a higher level then they are now they won’t be good deals.
Wrong the Spurs are built primarily through the draft. Duncan, Ginobili, Parker, Leonard, Blair, Splitter. Sure luck factors in however due talent evaluation is a skill. I’m not sold on Demps or Williams. There’s some moves that I like, but the big decision I don’t tend to agree with.
We are without young talent. Outside of Davis and Anderson what player under 25 that we have the rights to past two years can you say has the talent to really help this team with certainty moving forward. I don’t know how anybody would think this team is anywhere close to competing at a high level as currently constructed. It would be extremely foolish to turn down a chance to acquire young cheap talent.
daThRONe MikeStanley1 what constitutes a “small market” first. Does Detroit count? Cause if it were, I seem to reckon Detroit making a name for itself back in the mid 2000s. They built themselves through smart trades and signings.
What about the Utah Jazz? Small market? They built themselves around 2 draft picks that were years apart and a slew of smart signings. No?
What about PHX of the late 2000s? Joe Johnson was acquired via trade at age 20. Nash and Richardson were signed as FA. They re-tooled on the fly via trade with ATL that netted them Diaw.
No rebuilding plan is perfect. The best way you can do is to continuously acquire good assets (whether that’s a pick or a signing is not the matter). Good assets are usually players who are worth more than their contract and/or hold a good deal of “possible” improvement in them.
Spurs are built on both trades and drafts. Leonard was taken from a trade for an asset they acquired through the draft. Neal, Bonner, Green and Diaw are from the free agent market. Parker, Ginobili, Splitter, Duncan and Blair are from the draft.
And of course you won’t agree with most of Dell’s and Monty’s decisions — your plan seems to revolve around collecting as many 20 year olds you deem to be good and hope they grow together. But something that people don’t realize is that for every Durant-Westbrook-Harden-Ibaka, there’s a Cousins-Evans-Fredette, there’s a Love-Johnson-Williams-Flynn-blablalbla. I mean, I’ve yet to see a team in the past 10 years build itself around players they drafted 1~2 years apart. The last team to attempt to do that is POR (Oden-Roy-Aldridge).
We are not without young talent. Davis, Anderson, Gordon constitute as young and talented (albeit one is injury prone). And no, this team is nowhere near close to high level competition. Drafting 2 20 year olds has as much a chance as getting as there as drafting 1 20 year old and a bunch of other under 25 year olds.
nicobaguio daThRONe MikeStanley1
Those Piston and Jazz team are from a different era(no max contract or no 4 year contract length. And while there’s no blueprint that is the rare exception not the rule. Golden St., OKC, Cleveland, SA, all the right teams on the right path are built via the draft.
Is it possible to build via FA of course it is. Is it likely in the common era of the NBA in a small market not really.
And for every Cousins-Evans-Fredette there’s a Curry-Thompson-Barnes, Irving-Thompson-Waiters, Duncan-Parker-Ginobili, or Aldridge-Batum-Lillard. So to just focus on the times it doesn’t work isn’t fair.
Anderson is a good player but not on par for a top 3 or 4 core member of a championship team. Gordon like you mention can’t stay healthy and we have no guarantees he’ll be here past 2014-15. This team lacks the raw young talented players to build around plain and simple.
daThRONe MikeStanley1 wrong. Pistons and Jazz teams were built in an era when there was already a max contract (1999 lockout).
Aldridge/Batum/Lillard. Between those 3, I don’t think that trio is championship material. Plus, Aldridge and Batum are NOT in their rookie contracts anymore.
Really? You think a Curry/Thompson/Barnes can find a way to be a championship trio?
Irving-Waiters-Thompson.. I’m pretty sure Cleveland is looking at all possible opportunities to get back into the playoffs. That probably includes TRADING the 4th pick for veteran who’s worth more than his contract.
I’ve pointed out why SA is not a team that was built primarily through the draft. A lot of their core pieces came from free agency or trades too.
So by my count, of all the normally accepted “title contenders” only two teams have core players they drafted: OKC and CHI. I’m not disregarding the times they got it right — I think YOU’RE the one disregarding it. Teams have attempted to do this type of thing multiple times and failed.
SAC – Cousins/Evans/Fredette/Robinson
PHI – Young/Turner/Holiday
TOR – Bosh/Charlie V then Bosh/Bargnani/DeRozan then Bargnani/DeRozan/Valanciunas/Ross
WAS – Wall/Young/Mcgee
MIL – Bogut/Jennings
Don’t even get me started on Minnesota.
There’s a reason why there are teams that always find themselves in the lottery. Because they pin all their hopes on these 20 year olds, expecting the world out of them and then when they fail, they don’t take ANY of the blame.
Question: What is the difference between drafting a 20 year old and say, signing a 22 year old to a contract similar to a rookie contract? If for example these players were signed to the following contracts:
What’s the difference between say drafting Oladipo and signing Chase Budinger to a 3 year, 10 million contract (final year unguaranteed)? The difference is that Budinger is 2 years older (4 more years in the NBA) and I got him without giving up assets.
Again, I am not against drafting. It’s a cheap source of labor. And I think it’s an important part of rebuilding.
What I do have a problem with is the consistent need to get 20 year olds by trading good assets. Say we have just 4 really good assets (Davis/Anderson/Gordon and 5th pick). We trade Gordon for Burke (a trade scenario you proposed in HR). Now, we still only have 4 good assets.
But if we say sign players to good contracts (if for some miracle, Pekovic agrees to a 30/4 contract with us). Now, we’ll have 5 assets instead of 4. Of course we can be hamstrung by those contracts (if say they get injured). But picks also have a way of hamstringing us. If they bust, they net us zero value.
Again, not against drafting. But I’m not one for pinning all my hopes on the draft.
I think plan B is the kind of team that monty&dell will persue this summer because we all know that monty likes playing with an old school 5 in the lineup. Personally i like this idea as well as it will take pressure off AD and allow him to develop.
As for guards/wings, they will look to place an elite defender next to gordon so it will be either oladipo or trade the pick + lopez for bleadsoe. With those moves I believe we are a playoff team next season and with another solid addition in the next offseason we will become contenders
I don’t envy Dell or Monty. This is a great time for the Pelicans organization but there are a lot of options. I am wondering with Jared Jack becoming a free agent, can Golden State hang onto him? His stock definitely rose with his play this past season and post season. Would that be something to consider as well.
I love the plan D,looking for guys buried in bad teams and/or bench or with some kind of problem(O.J Mayo Darren Collison last year). BTW, Phoenix maybe still want Gordon, i don´t like Kendall but one of the lakers picks and/or their own pick i would take it. Others options for cheap players are Varejao, Oklahoma´s young players (Lamb Jones III), Jared dudley, Prigioni(i love him), even Derrick Williams (he´s very good in defense), i don´t know so many options.
in prospects, we can get the 14th and 21th from utah, even more(burks maybe). We pick a risk(Gobert), some more “safe” (Franklin, Saric), and a back up pg(Schroeder), and Oladipo with our pick, maybe this is to young, but is so much talent that we can put together, with long and cheap contracts.
soulbreaker So how would we get the 4 picks?
jsl05 soulbreaker trading Gordon Greivis, Lopez, a future pick, buying the pick with cap space or exceptions(if they trade Gordon ca use a huge one), among other options
Big Board:
1. Victor Oladipo
2. Ben McLemore
3. Nerlens Noel
4. Otto Porter
5. Alex Len
6. C.J. McCollum
7. Trey Burke
8. Dario Saric
9. Anthony Bennett
10. Shabazz Muhammad
jsl05 Oladipo first? if that the case i trade down to 3th o 4th place and other assets, pick Oladipo/Porter/Mclemore
soulbreaker jsl05 yeah you can’t take Oladipo over McLemore, even if he’s more of a “need” at this point.
soulbreaker MikeStanley1 I just think Oladipo will be better than McLemore. The easiest thing to fix is shooting; that is Oladipo’s only major weakness. McLemore can play good defense, but he only does when he wants to. Also, he’s not that good of a creator. He’s merely an athletic shooter.
MikeStanley1 soulbreaker jsl05
I don’t agree with his overall board, but I do like Oladipo over McElmore. In this league you have to want it. I want guys who have a history of hard work over a natural. Victor played well in crunch time all season Ben had a tendency to disappear that’s a red flag for me.
daThRONe MikeStanley1 soulbreaker In the past hour, I’ve had a few changes to the board that I’ll post later. I want no part of Noel. I’m not a huge Porter fan. I don’t want to touch Bennett or Shabbazz. I feel like Cody Zeller is a safe pick. I like Dennis Schroeder.
I’ll probably get lambasted, but Chris Andersen would fit the profile of “Plan D”. I went to both Bucks/Heat home playoff games in Milwaukee and at any time Andersen was no worse than the 4th best player on the court. For most of game 3 he was the 2nd best player on the court behind LeBron. It’s rare to find an athlete of his size with that kind of lateral quickness and straight up athleticism.
MikeStanley1 agree, it´s like a dirty version of Admunson
soulbreaker MikeStanley1 I am ignorant of the Heat’s cap situation heading into next season, but it seems that Andersen would absolutely need to get every penny possible on this next deal. He can’t have much $$$ given his time off and legal issues, and he never really had a large contract in the first place. He’s perpetually playing on vet minimum deals, so it seems like the door could be open for a new team to snag him for a reasonable price (what’s a reasonable price for a pseudo-starting 5 – like $7 to $8 mill?).
MikeStanley1 soulbreaker more like Lopez 3 years/$ 5 mill per year, but who knows look Perkins, OKC is paying him 9mill per year.
soulbreaker MikeStanley1 Andersen is way better than Lopez in my opinion. He gets to the line a ton and creates a ton of havoc. Lopez is very placid by comparison.
I feel like Andersen’s “baggage” and history creates value IF you trust that he’s a quality person now. He’s always been a well-liked teammate (even during his problem years) so the only issue is – can you depend on him?
It has a lot of quality bigs coming mid to late 1st round if we could package a deal for lopez n a sign n trade for aminu for a late 1st rounder n pick up a steve Adams or a deing n have jj hickson to play mostly the 5 trade Vasquez n lance Thomas to bucks for Jennings I believe that Dell know how to deal look at who we traded for for ryno our 2nd leading scorer bucks have to deal Jennings this off season or lose him for nothing also he would come way cheaper than Bledsoe who the clippers might be looking for a kitchen sink in return especially if the vp3 rumors are true….
line up
1 Bledsoe(Jennings)/ rivers nate Robertson
2 Gordon/ oladipo/ curry (un drafted or late 2nd who knows)
3 Brewer or budinger ebanks n miller
4 AD ryno
5 hickson adams smith
Plain and simple you have two options. Some of these ideas are just awful Brandon Jennings will never be a winner in this league and Bledsoe has a very limited offensive game and we need guys who can create their own shots. You either be patient and draft Burke who will be a fine player despite the negatives you search for while adding subtle pieces in free agency. Option 2 get CP3 and Dwight here by any means because neither is a lock to return to LA for obvious reasons and you become an instant contender. How I am not quite sure but damn o would try.
DRobin79 i don´t like Jennings, but with AD the team don´t need superstars necessarily, only fix the holes. My idea take the way Indiana is following, OKC/Miami is different more like your idea.
soulbreaker DRobin79
You need all the superstars you can get. Who’s significantly better than KD aside from LeBron where is he now? This of course is assuming Davis becomes a superstar. The point being you never turn away from talent especially when it plays a completely different role than your current talent.
Jennings didn’t play the best this season but neither did lopez prior to the trade monty is a good coach and despite the record we finished all of the games close minus ever okc game we played smh
There are 3 options this offseason.
1. Go for CP3 and build around him. When his contract expires, let AD take over.
2. Build around current team: AD, EJ, Rivers, Ryno, draft pick, and FA
3. Trade Gordon and build around Davis
QUESTION? WHY DOES THIS WRITER HAVE US MOVING VAZQUEZ WHEN HE CLEARLY WAS THE BEST THING GOING FOR US. HE SETS UP OUR OFFENSE, SCORES WHEN NEEDED, AND IS NOT AFRAID OF ANYONE OR MOMENT. THE ONLY REASON HE AVERAGES 3 TOs IS BECAUSE HE WAS FORCED TO SETUP EVERYTHING THE MAJORITY OF THE YEAR.
WITH THAT BEING SAID WE NEED EASY BUCKETS, SOMEONE THAT CAN BE GIVEN THE BALL ON DA BLOCK AND CAN GO TO WORK. BIG AL IS THAT GUY.
TristanBisnezzWilliams Vasquez can’t play defense. Look at the small market teams that succeed like Memphis and Indiana. Their point guards are defense-oriented and can distribute the ball.
jsl05 TristanBisnezzWilliams YOU’RE RIGHT, HE DOES STRUGGLE A BIT AGAINST THE QUICKER PGs BUT BASKETBALL IS PLAYED BOTH WAYS, HE MAY HAVE A DISADVANTAGE ON DEFENSE BUT ON OFFENSE, THOSE PGS FACE THE SAME DILEMMA GUARDING HIM. GRAVY IS A LEGIT 6’6” 215 PG. WHO CAN SEE THE COURT JUST AS GOOD AS ANY GUARD IN TH LEAGUE, HE CAN POST SMALLER POINTS UP, AND BULLIES THEM WHEN GOING TO DA CUP.
jsl05 TristanBisnezzWilliams LETS SAY YOU DRAFT OLADIPO. TO PLAY YOUR SG, YOU CAN HAVE DA ROOK GAURD POINTS AND LET GRAVY GAURD DA TWO SPOT SINCE HE IS SO TALL
Looking at Chad Ford’s big board, there are a lot of guys from 12-26 that I like.
MY OFFSEASON MOVES:
PG: VAZQUEZ/RIVERS/ROBERTS
SG: BREWER/OLADIPO OR McELMORE
SF: GRANGER/MILLER
PF:AD/RYNO
C:JEFFERSON OR PECKOVIC/ SMITH
NOTES:GRANGER WOULD BE ACQUIRED IN A DEAL FOR GRANGER. BOTH PLAYERS WOULD BE GOING BACK HOME IN THIS DEAL. WE ALL KNOW IT IS ONLY A MATTER OF TIME BEFORE GORDON IS DEALT. I FEEL THIS MAY BE THE BEST DEAL SINCE BOTH PLAYERS ARE BATTLING INJURY. YOU GO BIG IN FREE AGENCY WITH PECK OR BIG AL TO HELP OUT AD AND RYNO. YOU PICK UP BREWER TO ADD ANOTHER WING WHO CAN DEFEND AND HIT DA LONG BALL. IN THE DRAFT I WOULD REPLACE GORDON WITH THIS PICK DEPENDING ON WHERE IT LANDS. I WOULD PREFER OLADIPO BUT McELMORE WOULD FIT IN AS WELL.
TristanBisnezzWilliams I’d probably take that, but I’m not sure if I like so much change in so short a time.
jsl05 TristanBisnezzWilliams YEA ITS ALOT BUT THE FRANCHISE NEEDS TO BE AGGRESSIVE IN ORDER TO CAPTIVATE THE FAN BASE. BOOGIE BENSON IS ABOUT WINNING AND MAKING MONEY BOTTOMLINE. PLUS I LIKE MONTY AND I KIND OF FEEL LIKE THIS YEAR IS DO OR DIE FOR HIM . MIGHT AS WELL GIVE HIM SOMETHING TO WORK WITH
TristanBisnezzWilliams Granger for Granger you say? This trade is problematic. On the one hand, they have the same agent so there’s a conflict of interest. On the other hand, Granger is just as injury prone as Granger is, lol.
🙂 JK, I wouldn’t want to trade Gordon for another “injury-waiting-to-happen” guy.
PG – Trey Burke
SG – Eric Gordon
PF -Anthony Davis
SF – Andre Iguodala
C – Robin Lopez
Most ppl think that Eric Gordon will be dealt, but I don’t see a team taking him. I think that the Pelicans can trade Vasquez for maybe a pick next year & cut Jason smith to relieve cap space and acquire iguodala to play the sf role for this coming year, he is capable of doing the role would tremendously ignite this team and find players in next years draft r agency to fill the permanent roles for sf and center. Austin Rivers to me will command the role of sg when Gordon is dealt.
Chamilltheking No way I’d go after Iguodala. He’d command way too much money. Why would we ever cut Jason Smith???
Only reason I would cut him if they had to to free up space, and iguodala u NEED. Vet in the locker room that can help them get better. You have to make a big move to make some kind of splash. Ppl want Deng how much you think he cost about the same. I wanted mind Deng either but don’t see bulls giving him up.
Chamilltheking I think the Bulls would definitely do Gordon for Deng. They have Butler to replace Deng and two guards that can create their own shot (huge in the playoffs). That would allow Belinelli to come off the bench.
I wouldn’t mind Deng in place of iguodala!! But I was just chasin a PROVEN vet that can help the team and YUNG players to GROW!!
Chamilltheking I’d say that the 28o-year-old Deng is proven.
I kno that’s why I said proven
Chamilltheking U can’t just cut Smith to free up cap room. U would have to use the amnesty clause in order to free up the cap space and he only makes $2.5 million so it wouldn’t be worth it.
Ill be honest not good at the cap stuff just try to find ways to best build the team. Good looking out!!
jayingram5 Chamilltheking Actually, Smith’s deal is only partially guaranteed, so they could dump a good bit of his salary without using the amnesty. Why they would do that is another matter entirely.
Chamilltheking This isn’t the NFL, brah. If you could “cut” players – why on earth would you cut JASON SMIHT and not Eric Gordon? Makes no sense.
MikeStanley1 Chamilltheking First off I know this aint the NFL BRAH, and sec I said I didn’t understand the cap. With that said if it came between Jason Smith or a better player I would go with the better play no matter how I get him that’s me. Sometimes you give to get. Now for as Gordon and your so called NO SENSE, have you seen how hurt his has been throughout his career do you know someone that will sign him and HIS BIG CONTRACT. Ill answer that for you no one but US. I see him on this team next year so I don’t see a trade for him so if it aint him and you HAVE to get better someone gotta GO!! Maybe even Lopez if you can get better at the position. Look at it like that.
Good ideas except for cutting J Smitty his size toughness and shooting ability from mid range is valuable. The Iguodala move would be nice given hisddefense
I’m starting to jump on the Kentavious Caldwell-Pope train. D and 3 guy that is really athletic. I’m really starting to like trade-down if we can’t get Dipo.
I would like to see the Pelicans draft Anthony Bennett and play him at SF. He’s a guy who can post up and he has a mid-range game, not to mention he is a powerful dunker. This move would also allow them to play AD at center sometimes. You can then go out and get yourself a Dorrell Wright or a Gerald Henderson to play the wing. This gives you a lot of flexibility with the lineup. In today’s NBA, u need to have guys who can both play and guard multiple positions.
jayingram5 The problem with this guy is that he’s too much of a tweener and he takes a lot of plays off.
I would like to see Lebron James in a Pelicans Uniform! Lets make it happen Dell! Maybe bring in Paul Pierce and D Rose. Pelican Dream Team.
qayboi hide your stash. lol
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I really think Dell Demps will go all in right now, even though next year’s draft class is enticing with Wiggins, Parker, Smart, etc….Right now, I see the Pelicans take either Trey Burke, Ben McLemore, Otto Porter, or Victor Oladipo. Bennett can fit the bill, but he is too much of a Larry Johnson type of guy the Pelicans do not need.
As for free agents, they need to bolster their bench (Carroll, Korver, Budinger, Henderson???), get a big name guy, and a quasi starter. Pekovic can be the guy manning the middle, but I see a sign and trade deal have to happen as the TimberWolves need a SG after the Brandon Roy debacle. Besides us, I do see a plethora of teams wanting his services (LAL, POR, HOU, ATL, SAS, DAL, etc). If that does not work, JJ Hickson or Big Al could be a good signing at the right price. CP3, in my opinion will be a reach, unless you have a great bench and coach (VDN is a horrible coach). I can’t see CP3 go to Dallas or NYK, I think depth and health will be a key decision for CP3.
Here goes….
Sign Iggy, Draft Oladipo, Trade Gordon/Lopez for Bledsoe/Jordan, Sign/Trade Jordan for Pekovic, Sign Brewer, Resign Aminu for CHEAP.
Depth Chart
Bledsoe/Vasquez/Roberts
Iggy/Oladipo/Rivers
Brewer/Aminu/Miller (or let Miller develop in D-league)
The Brow/Rhyno
Pekovic/Smith
Iggy/Oladipo/Rivers/Brewer can play multiple positions so there are many possible lineup configurations.
I really love your blog and I enjoy your podcast I have been a fan of the site and True Hoop network for my insider news a very long time. In my honest opinion as a Pelicans fan, the number 1 move this summer is the need to move Eric Gordon.
I would Trade EG and the first rounder (2014 draft) next year to Portland for Wesley Mathews and Nick Batum. Now that I got my starting SF and some veterean leadership. I agree 100% with plan B on the center spot lets go after Al Jefferson or Pekovic. PG I would move Vasquez because he is not a starter but my free agent list is 1. E bledsoe 2 Darin Collison 3 Brandon Jennings. Draft wise this year I would pray for Olidipo or the kid from LeHigh.
Depth Chart
Bledsoe/Roberts
Mathews/Olidipo/Rivers
Batum/Miller
AD/Rhyno
Pekovic/Lopez/Smith
Any chance the team could have C.J. McCollum on their radar?
Here are my thoughts:
Remain patient Crescent City. We have cornerstone player in Davis and have some solid pieces to build around. However, I feel like Benson buying this team, the rebrand, and the pressure to put fourth a playoff caliber team may overide any rebuilding project. While I hope this is not the case I can almost guarantee Benson’s theory will be let’s sell our soul to get into the playoffs. Who cares what seed, how deep we go, etc. Benson will want to make a splash. I dont think a team with Pekovic, Jennings, Henderson, Iggy, or any other available free agents will make us a title contender. I do believe we are a couple players from possible playoff contention, but let’s be honest this team has a lot of growing up to do. I thnk the best thing we can do at this point is be patient.
I pose the question, would you rather:
Go out and spend in a below average free agency class + Draft at our position: Teeter on the cusp of playoff contention for the next 5 years – let’s say making it 3 times and missing it twice. Landing high teen draft picks, and always getting bounced in the first round.
Stay patient and enter the Jabari Parker/Andrew Wiggins – Sure we suck yet again. But what a better opportunity to develop Davis by giving him max minutes? Getting Gordon healthy and stronger for another season. Developing Rivers more, and pairing our #1 draft pick with a future phenom. If those lotto balls clink the right way we are a perenial playoff team for the next 6-10 years and become very attractive for the mega 2014 draft class.
New practice facilities, rebrand, two studs on rookie contracts, cap space, and an easy selling point to attract — Kyrie Irving, Eric Bledsoe, Ricky Rubio, Michael Kid Gilchrist, Luol Deng, Jimmy Butler, Harrison Barnes, Paul George, Carmelo Anthony, Khawi Leonard, Darrel Arthur, Kenneth Faried, Larry Sanders, Greg Monroe, Varejao, Cousions, etc.
How nasty would this look? Age at time of 2014 start of season
PG – Eric Bledose (24), Maybe go after John Wall, Avery Bradley, etc.
SG – Eric Gordon (25), Jimmy Butler – Wouldnt mind going after gordon heyward,
SF – Andrew Wiggins (19), Quincy Pondexter (turned into a very nice role player and shooter) – would love to see us toss money at Paul George,
PF – Anthony Davis (21), – Backups Darrell Aurthur, Larry Sanders,
C – Greg Monroe – NOLA native (24), Ryan Anderson (26) – Both Stretch 5’s with great ability to pass and rebound.
kaclemen
The most important thing with waiting is flexibility. In case something doesn’t work. I love basketball and I love my team. If we have young talent can I’m fine with losing for a year or two.
Out of curiosity who would you have us drafting this year.
Depending where we fall I would live to see us go after Otto Porter Jr or Oladipo
I think Eric Gordon should be traded for Danny Granger! Straight up trade. Will def help both team. Both players have injury issue. Both players will be happy.
“Remember last time this year we was losing as hornets.” “You remember that we pelicans now!” “Be happy with what you got.” “You be happy.” “Me I want what’s coming to me!” “We’ll whats coming to you?” “Trey Burke and all the WINNING!”
with everything your’e saying what about an Eric Gordan for Gerald Henderson and Charlottes Lottery Pick for a trade with the Bobcats?? Your Comments and thoughts greatly appreciated! Chamilltheking
Dillion77 Chamilltheking There can be some weird scenarios but for some reason I have the Magic taking McLemore not Burke, Wiz getting Porter, BOBCATS taking Bennett (Possible Oladipo) they need big bodies but they also need perimeter shooting but if Magic take McLemore I see them going big, Suns would take Oladipo as a cheap investment than Gordon which they targeted before, which would leave the Pelicans with Burke my choice. They can end up with Oladipo if magic take Burke, or even Shabazz if bobcats don’t take Bennett and take Mclemore since Magic took Burke and Suns take Oladipo. That’s the ways I see it but my mind tells me Burke for some reason don’t ask me why not because I want him either.
Chamilltheking Dillion77 Those all sound like possible scenarios because i also can see Magic taking McClemore. What would happen though if Noel didnt go first? Rumors are Cleveland is very high on taking Otto Porter first possibly.
Dillion77 Chamilltheking If that would happen my opinion would be
1 Cavs – Porter
2 Magic – I still see Mclemore but they could go Noel
3 Wiz – Bennett Cause they NEED a PF
4 Bobcats – Noel if Magic don’t take Him
5 Suns – Oladipo or Burke
6 Pelicans – Burke or Oladipo Depends on Suns Pick
Chamilltheking Dillion77 its that damn 5th pick by the suns. I doubt they take Burke as they have Dragic and Marshall as their backcourt. im seeing Burke more now as our pick unless We trade up! Jason Calmes
Dillion77 Chamilltheking Jason Calmes I like the Burke Pick if he falls to us because to me he is the Biggest Marketable player of the bunch that the team can pair with Davis for the pick n roll play that Burke thrives off. But again this is my opinion and would hope just to land any WORTHY player at that pick!!!
Chamilltheking Dillion77 Jason Calmes Burke would be good as the pick-and-roll handler, and with Burke and Rivers hopefully growing, we could trade Vasquez for a SF possibly
Dillion77 Chamilltheking @Jason Calmes That’s what I been thinking for a min now. Vasquez became a nice trading piece if they get Burke cause Vasquez had a GOOD season. Mite attraction a trading partner some where.
Chamilltheking Dillion77 Exactly possibly a Minnesota Trade involving Vasquez and Lopez for Pekovic and Derrick Williams?
Dillion77 Chamilltheking Maybe trade Vasquez to the Bucks for Monte Ellis if the Bucks lose Jennings cause Ellis Will not return, With the Addition of Ellis at SG and ABLE to trade Gordon to Bulls for Deng you get ya SF. And Keep Lopez for anotha year.
Dillion77 I meant acquire Ellis cause he wont return and trade Vasquez to Bucks if they Lose Jennings.
Chamilltheking Dillion77 idk, im always been iffy on any talk for Ellis. how would attitude and ball-hogging change the offense and locker room? and Jennings id be okay with just okay
Dillion77 Chamilltheking Some players just need a change of scenery NOT ALL, but some change with new life. You wouldn’t like if we some how get burke
PG Trey Burke/Roberts
SG Monte Ellis/Rivers
PF Anthony Davis/Anderson
SF Deng/Smith
C Lopez
Chamilltheking Dillion77 Burke im good with as he can play the pick-and-roll well. But i want to see next year a roster of
PG-Dragic, Roberts
SG-Oladipo, Rivers
SF-Clark(FA), Willliams
PF-Davis, Anderson
C-Pekovic, Smith
with a trade to Minnesota for Pekovic and Williams, with another trade of Gordon to Suns for Dragic and a pick, i like this roster and im not too harsh on if all else fails too draft Burke or Saric.
Chamilltheking the #4 pick in the Gordan trade
I feel ya but I don’t kno too much bout dragic or Williams