What kind of players does this team need to take it to the next level next season?

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Originally Posted by ragincaucasian

Willie probably would have buried him on the bench. Honestly.

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Maybe, but he was undersized and coming off an injury so maybe he gets the Nance treatment :hihi:

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Originally Posted by Pelicanidae

Am I being absolutely insane for thinking that a healthy EJ Liddell completely changes the outcome of this season?

I know it's such a long shot and I'm being weird but I can't get it out of my head that if he plays, we win games we ended up losing. Not a huge number but like, 3 or 4 of them. And that's the difference between this, and a real playoff seed.

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Who knows? He could have been a great bench player or he may have spent the season in the G League. He is a complete unknown.

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Originally Posted by Pelicanidae

Maybe, but he was undersized and coming off an injury so maybe he gets the Nance treatment :hihi:

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Nah, he get's the rookie treatment. Can't have these damn rookies out here getting playing time over the vets like Garrett Temple!

I still can't believe he sat Trey for WEEKS while Josh freaking Richardson soaked up all the minutes. What in the everloving.........?

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Originally Posted by PELICANSFAN

Who knows? He could have been a great bench player or he may have spent the season in the G League. He is a complete unknown.

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No more an unknown than any other rookie, and since he did 3 years at college probably less of an unknown than most.

It's just when I think about what this team really needed, especially given Green's hate of playing JV in key moments, having someone who (at least on paper) fits the description of someone Willie Green might play but who was a great passer, really high level rebounder and screener, and a respectable shooter, who could have just plugged some of those minutes would have been huge.

Scoot Henderson and GG Jackson. A Dynamic PG and a switchable big that could play small ball 5.

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Originally Posted by tdcreator

Scoot Henderson and GG Jackson. A Dynamic PG and a switchable big that could play small ball 5.

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I doubt Willie would play either of them.

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Originally Posted by Pelicanidae

No more an unknown than any other rookie, and since he did 3 years at college probably less of an unknown than most.

It's just when I think about what this team really needed, especially given Green's hate of playing JV in key moments, having someone who (at least on paper) fits the description of someone Willie Green might play but who was a great passer, really high level rebounder and screener, and a respectable shooter, who could have just plugged some of those minutes would have been huge.

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He was a 2nd round pick. He is a complete unknown in the NBA. No way to know if he would have helped at all or been the next Herb Jones. Hopefully he comes in healthy next season and earns a role.

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Originally Posted by PELICANSFAN

He was a 2nd round pick. He is a complete unknown in the NBA. No way to know if he would have helped at all or been the next Herb Jones. Hopefully he comes in healthy next season and earns a role.

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I had him projected as a top 25 pick, personally.

But yeah the unpredictability is totally fair (I believed in him and thought he would be good, but we can't be certain of that) but he's not as much of a gamble as someone who played, for example, 3 games in college and that's it. You have a larger sample size from which to draw conclusions and several years from which to track trends.

Still uncertain, but it's not like saying ''oh, he's someone who generally tries to boxes out'' is a shot in the dark guess with no good support.

Root for OKC and Minny to win on Friday. If this happens, we move to 12 in the lottery. Odds are a little better for pulling a top 3 pick at 12 instead of 14.

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Originally Posted by mriguy

Root for OKC and Minny to win on Friday. If this happens, we move to 12 in the lottery. Odds are a little better for pulling a top 3 pick at 12 instead of 14.

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The good news is that there's really fun, interesting prospects in this draft all the way through the lottery and even some intriguing figures outside of it.

The other news to consider is that we may simply not use the pick. Trade time?

Package the pick with Jonas and whatever else to get Willie a big he trusts

PG - Cason Wallace - Kentucky (unless we move into the top 4)

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Originally Posted by Pelicanidae

The good news is that there's really fun, interesting prospects in this draft all the way through the lottery and even some intriguing figures outside of it.

The other news to consider is that we may simply not use the pick. Trade time?

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Given how many young players this team has, I can see it getting traded (if it stays late lottery) with a player to upgrade a position.

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Originally Posted by PELICANSFAN

Given how many young players this team has, I can see it getting traded (if it stays late lottery) with a player to upgrade a position.

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...or trading some of our young players.

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Originally Posted by As I See It

...or trading some of our young players.

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Sure, but we know that Trey, Herb, and Jose have earned their spots (at least as far as I'm concerned) and I want to give Liddell a real look. So that's still 4 young players before we even consider that Zion and Ingram are both still pretty young too.

The easy answer is we don't need a roster move, we need health. Knowing that's pretty impossible to control though here are my thoughts.

It's hard but I think the team has to move forward as though Zion isn't going to play a game and anything he gives you is gravy. With that train of thought I look at our roster and see a lot of good support that can work together. In my opinion there's some fat that can be trimmed (no pun intended) from the roster. I've seen nothing from Kira to give me any kind of hope. Liddell we can hopefully stick in the G League. After that I see no point in Temple or Richardson being on the roster. I actually still really like Hayes but I can understand losing him. WHG seems like a good 13th man on a roster who isn't eating up much cap so I'd keep him.

I think Jonas is strangely an anomaly. I usually look at when a team is performing their best, what are they doing, and how does a player fit into that. The truth is that Jonas doesn't beyond being a decent 3 pt shooter. I keep concocting trades in my mind of how we somehow move him and get KAT or someone maybe slightly unrealistic but just realistic enough for e to talk myself into. Then whenever I see Jonas play, it feels like he's always doing something helpful that doesn't exist outside of him on our roster, and whenever I watch whoever I had my eye on trading for, I mostly see flaws and don't see how it fixes our team. That's to say I keep wavering on my opinion of him but ultimately I think I want him on the team next year.

So all of that said and given my line of thinking that gives us (forgive the very fluid positions):

CJ/Jose
Trey/Dyson
BI/Naji
Herb
Jonas/Nance/WHG

There's a glaring hole at PF and the need for a player who could break defenses but like I said, I don't think you count on him and getting a dude like that is probably not tenable but if a dude like Siakam becomes available, then I'm looking pretty seriously at him. A rim protecting big would be nice but it's hard to imagine there's much playing time at the 5 given our roster so I think you'd have to look at someone like Kyle Anderson or John Collins to try and fill that position as a 4. After that I think the only weakness is a traditional PG to set tempo and control the game. I think a player like Cory Joseph fits that bill pretty well.

To get someone like Siakam you're going to pay through the nose. Especially to Masai but now is the time to spend whatever capital you have, even if it means trading Zion. I imagine Kyle Anderson may be a bit of a stressed asset at this point and it may not take too much to get him. Going into next season with:

CJ/Jose/Joseph
Trey/Dyson/Rookie
BI/Herb/Naji
Siakam/Anderson
Jonas/Nance/WHG

feels good to me. You've definitely lowered your ceiling but raised your floor. You probably aren't planning on competing for a championship any time with that core but you're looking at going deep in the playoffs regularly and for me, that'd be worth it.

For me, I'm more interested in moving CJ than JV. But that's assuming coaching, and we can't assume that. Keeping JV with Green as he is would be useless. So I'm resigned to losing either, and I can cope with that.

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Originally Posted by Pelicanidae

For me, I'm more interested in moving CJ than JV. But that's assuming coaching, and we can't assume that. Keeping JV with Green as he is would be useless. So I'm resigned to losing either, and I can cope with that.

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Sign me up for this....

How about

NY gets.....CJ and # 1

NO gets.....Mitchell Robinson and JHart (note: Josh would have to opt in for next year.)

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Then go get Donte' DiVincenzo (He would have to opt out)

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PG: DiVincenzo / DD / Jose'
SG: Herb / Hart / Rookie
SF: BI / 3M3 / Naji
PF: Z / LNJ / EJ
C: JV / Robinson

I hate sitting 3M3 but someone has to play (and defend) at the point.

Leaves JAX. Kira, and Willy as odd men out. And, I consider JRich a salary dump.

I am not interested in moving CJ at all. He means more to this team than what he was able to do individually on the court this season. It has been said when he joined the team our players became more professional in everything from practice habits to eating habits to sleeping habits. He is the leader this team needs. Also, he is way better than he played this year. Dude had a significant injury that made it hard for him to play to his normal level, but he played hurt because the team needed him, which is the exact kind of leadership that other unnamed guys need to see. I am intrigued by him in a 6th man role. I am not intrigued about getting rid of him.

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Originally Posted by hornetsrebirth

I am not interested in moving CJ at all. He means more to this team than what he was able to do individually on the court this season. It has been said when he joined the team our players became more professional in everything from practice habits to eating habits to sleeping habits. He is the leader this team needs. Also, he is way better than he played this year. Dude had a significant injury that made it hard for him to play to his normal level, but he played hurt because the team needed him, which is the exact kind of leadership that other unnamed guys need to see. I am intrigued by him in a 6th man role. I am not intrigued about getting rid of him.

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Be hard for him to mean less, in fairness.

I'm kidding, couldn't help myself.

No but seriously I do think there's an issue with the fact that 2 out of our 3 top players, and the two most ball-dominant of those three, are both mid-range heavy score first figures. BI is the better passer of the two of course, but he's still score before he's pass.

I get that in a normal year, CJ will be probably more effective than he was this year, but if I'm choosing between the two I'm picking BI every single day, and I don't know how sustainable it is to have them both long term.

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Originally Posted by hornetsrebirth

I am not interested in moving CJ at all. He means more to this team than what he was able to do individually on the court this season. It has been said when he joined the team our players became more professional in everything from practice habits to eating habits to sleeping habits. He is the leader this team needs. Also, he is way better than he played this year. Dude had a significant injury that made it hard for him to play to his normal level, but he played hurt because the team needed him, which is the exact kind of leadership that other unnamed guys need to see. I am intrigued by him in a 6th man role. I am not intrigued about getting rid of him.

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If he's so much of an asset off the court then why didn't he realize how much he hurt the team by trying to constantly play hero ball? He did not have a significant injury or else he would not have played. Sure he had games where he was on but most of the time he was a detriment to the team by playing hero ball, especially at crunch time. And worse WG either did not see it and address it or because he's "CJ" he just let him do whatever he wanted. I mean most of the time that guy can't hit 2FT's in a row. I say he comes off the bench as a spot up shooter or we get something for him

Along with his injured thumb, CJ McCollum played the final seven games of the season with a torn labrum in his shoulder, sources tell @TheAthletic.

It'll be a long offseason for the Pels' veteran guard.

— Will Guillory (@WillGuillory) April 13, 2023

Pelicans fans when a star player is injured and doesnt play: This guy sucks lets get rid of him!

Pelicans fans when a star player is injured and plays through it: This guy sucks lets get rid of him!

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Originally Posted by hornetsrebirth

Pelicans fans when a star player is injured and doesnt play: This guy sucks lets get rid of him!

Pelicans fans when a star player is injured and plays through it: This guy sucks lets get rid of him!

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Can't use that argument on me, I'm fine with the stars sitting out when they're injured :hihi:

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Originally Posted by djrnno

If he's so much of an asset off the court then why didn't he realize how much he hurt the team by trying to constantly play hero ball? He did not have a significant injury or else he would not have played. Sure he had games where he was on but most of the time he was a detriment to the team by playing hero ball, especially at crunch time. And worse WG either did not see it and address it or because he's "CJ" he just let him do whatever he wanted. I mean most of the time that guy can't hit 2FT's in a row. I say he comes off the bench as a spot up shooter or we get something for him

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I really think WG recognized it and that's why BI became the primary ball handler in clutch situations during the stretch run (the by-product of which is CJ became what he is...a catch and shoot player). But there were times (like last night when the game was on the line) that CJ took it upon himself to play "hero ball". As I've said before, CJ wants so badly for his last name to be Lillard that it clouds his judgement. And no matter how you slice it, his defense is atrocious and beyond repair (see Josh Giddey's career night)