New Orleans Pelicans draft speculation will now accelerate !!!!!!

Now that the NBA lottery has concluded and the draft order set for the league's 30 teams – the New Orleans Pelicans will pick sixth this year after going first and 10th in 2012 – hundreds of scenarios will be served up for perusal and someone will get the name of New Orleans' choice correct.

The Pelicans have a couple of glaring holes on their current roster.

There's a huge need for a small forward who can score, a shooting guard who can stay healthy, perhaps a point guard who could allow Greivis Vasquez the freedom to play more off the ball which could reduce the number of turnovers, or a center with a more explosive offensive arsenal.

"We think it's a deep draft and we'll be able to add a contributor," Pelicans General Manager Dell Demps said Tuesday night. "We think that it could be a different type of guy. It could be a guy that's ready to play right away, or it could be a developmental guy. Monty (Williams) and I will sit down and evaluate every option that we have."
"We're going to look at every opportunity to make our team a better team," he said. "So that (a trade) is a possibility."

As the draft approaches, one of those options may be to package the pick, along with oft-injured shooting guard Eric Gordon, who has been the object of many recent social media trade references that have Gordon being shipped elsewhere.

Those rumors are likely to become increasingly prevalent as June 27 nears.

At last week's draft combine in Chicago, Len, on crutches, boldly announced: "Ten years from now, I'll be the best player out of this draft." New Orleans needs to up their game.

In two years at Maryland, Len averaged 11.9 points and 7.8 rebounds.