The Move Pelicans Fans Are Waiting For Isn't Coming

With two months until the start of the NBA season for the New Orleans Pelicans, many onlookers are puzzled by the lack of movement this summer. After another disappointing season in which they won fewer than 30 games, the Pelicans did nothing to inspire confidence that the upcoming season will be different. Most signs point to the current roster being the one suiting up on opening night at home against the Indiana Pacers.

Despite no significant deals materializing, executive vice president of basketball operations Joe Dumars revealed that the team was active behind the scenes, pursuing ways to upgrade the roster. "We were engaged in a lot of conversations with a lot of different teams," Dumars said in an interview with The Times-Picayune’s Rod Walker recently.

Dumars continued, "The lack of moves being made right now is not from a lack of effort or us deciding we didn't want to do anything. We've engaged with a lot of teams this offseason. But there was just no big deal that I felt was going to make us better for us to pull the trigger on."

Outside of hiring new head coach Jamahl Mosley, the only moves of note for the Pelicans were re-signing veteran center DeAndre Jordan to a guaranteed two-year deal.

New Orleans seemed hesitant to pull the trigger on a blockbuster deal after a couple of questionable acquisitions last summer, including veteran center Kevon Looney, who appeared in only 21 games last year, and Jordan Poole, who was benched at one point during the year for his inconsistent play.

As a result, the team’s likely move going forward is to do nothing at this point.

Pelicans Fans Shouldn't Hold Their Breath Waiting For a Big Move

One issue with acquiring talent was the decision last season to forgo this year’s first-round draft pick after acquiring Derik Queen on draft night. Couple that with the team’s lack of major financial flexibility, and the team was hamstrung in acquiring a major free agent this summer.

New Orleans is currently around $8 million below the luxury tax line and will remain there. The Pelicans have never paid into the tax in their franchise history.

There are a few major deficiencies on this roster heading into the season, but with little time to make a splash move, anything New Orleans does is likely to be on a smaller scale.

The Pelicans signed a couple of big men to training camp deals this offseason to provide some size and fresh bodies to go through camp. Upgrading the center position was a top priority this summer, given the team's struggle to defend opponents in the paint. New Orleans hopes for a big year out of third-year center Yves Missi after falling some last season following his rookie campaign.

While it could be faulty thinking for the organization to assume Mosley could turn a 26-win roster a season ago into a viable competitor this year, they are likely to give him a chance to see what he can do with this specific squad.

Dejounte Murray returned last season after a year-long recovery from an Achilles injury. In his 14 games, he averaged 16.7 points, 6.4 assists, and 5.4 rebounds. Zion Williamson is coming off the second-healthiest season of his career, while there is much hope for the continued rise of rookies Jeremiah Fears and Derik Queen.

Mosley will have the opportunity to mold a young, talented but flawed team and maximize its potential before likely making a move at the deadline to flip Poole’s expiring $30+ million deal for future assets or trade their former first-round pick, Jordan Hawkins.

While that isn’t the news most fans want to hear, Dumars has been consistent in his messaging about the ‘discipline’ needed to conduct business in the NBA. When the subject of acquiring a first-round pick in this past draft came up, he was confident it could be done, but at what cost?

"We certainly could have got into the first round," Dumars said. "But the price was too steep to do it. That's where discipline comes in. It's appealing sometimes to say you can get into the first round. But at what cost?”

That cost for the Pelicans this summer seems to be not to pay one.

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