Jeremiah Fears' Shooting Improvement Is an Excellent Sign for Pelicans

The New Orleans Pelicans' season is winding down with nine games remaining until the offseason. New Orleans will miss the playoffs for a second straight year, and is in danger of back-to-back less than 30-win seasons for the first time since the 2012-2013 years. All is not lost, as rookie Jeremiah Fears has shown some strong progress in the latter portion of the team’s campaign. The former Oklahoma standout’s three-point shooting has improved dramatically since the All-Star break, and what seemed to be a weakness earlier in the year is turning into a strength.

Fears’ draft report coming into the league was that his strengths were his ball-handling and shot creation in the paint, but his outside shooting was a huge question mark heading to the NBA. The Chicago native shot just 28% from beyond the arc during his freshman season at Oklahoma before declaring for the NBA Draft. New Orleans selected Fears with the No. 7 overall pick, hoping to use his skill and athleticism at the point guard position to propel the team's offense. Fears started his career ice-cold in October, shooting just 21% from three during the opening games of his rookie season.

Jeremiah Fears tonight:

21 PTS (9/12 FG)
3 3s
2 STL pic.twitter.com/OnI9mDlkly
— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) March 25, 2026

Jeremiah Fears' Shooting Has Reached New Levels

He hovered around the 30% mark in December, January, and February, but since the All-Star break, the rookie guard has been on a tear.

Fears is shooting 38% from beyond the arc despite the fact that he’s playing significantly fewer minutes. Interim head coach James Borrego sent the rookie to the bench in January after he had started the previous 44 games. The impressive part is that Fears is averaging more three-point attempts since coming off the bench than when he started. His ability to take and make outside shots should do wonders for the Pelicans' offense in the future.

Over the past few seasons, New Orleans has been near the bottom of the league in attempts and makes from deep. This season, they rank 26th in attempts (32.6) and makes (11.3), which have been byproducts of uneven roster construction and style of play.

Sharpshooter Trey Murphy III accounts for more than a quarter of all three-point attempts on the team, while some of the Pelicans’ best players, like Zion Williamson and rookie Derik Queen, are not threats from deep. Fears’ emergence as a legit three-point threat would allow him to be an even greater threat offensively, given his quick pace and ability to get to the basket almost at will. Now, defenders will have to respect all aspects of his offensive game, both from outside and when he breaks down defenses to get to the rim.

His emergence will be necessary because of the backcourt changes sure to take place next year. Both Dejounte Murray and Jordan Poole are due a combined $66 million next season, but with the recent benching of Poole, a divorce with the former NBA champion seems extremely likely this summer.

With New Orleans already having traded Jose Alvarado to the New York Knicks, the team’s backcourt could look noticeably thin heading into next season. The Pelicans currently do not have a pick in the upcoming NBA Draft. New Orleans is counting on Fears to be a viable threat from distance to help create an outside threat alongside Murphy III.

Fears seems to be ahead of schedule in one of the perceived weaknesses scouts had for him before entering the NBA. If he can remain as reliable and consistent as he’s been since the All-Star break, the Pelicans no doubt have found their point guard of the future.