Yves Missi's Preseason Debut Was Worrying Sign for Pelicans

The New Orleans Pelicans opened their preseason with a 116-110 comeback victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday night. While New Orleans used an 18-0 second-half run to take a lead they wouldn’t relinquish, concerns remain, especially about how the Pelicans started the game.

Oklahoma City rested most of its stars, including Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holgrem, Jalen Williams, and other key role players Tuesday night. Meanwhile, New Orleans played all its key players and still found itself down by 15 points at halftime.

Some of the same issues that plagued this team last season resurfaced on Tuesday night, mainly a lack of three-point shooting and interior defense. All summer, executive vice president of basketball Joe Dumars and newly hired head coach Jamahl Mosley sang the praises of young center Yves Missi, suggesting the former Baylor standout was due for a breakthrough season.

The duo even noted Missi’s play for the Cameroon National Team this offseason reminded them of Hakeem Olajuwon. During his stint with his national basketball team, the 6-foot-11 center averaged 18 points, 11 rebounds, and 2.7 blocks per game.

On Tuesday night, Missi shot 1/7 from the field and finished with six points, seven rebounds, and was a -20 when he was on the floor. His counterpart for the Thunder is a rookie who absolutely dominated inside. Aday Mara finished a perfect 5/5 from the field, with 12 and 9 rebounds in his 18 minutes of play.

This isn’t a good sign for the Pelicans, who did nothing this summer to address their need for interior size. They were hoping for a major leap from Missi this season, but if Tuesday night is any indication, it looks like more of the same as last year.

Pelicans need much more from Yves Missi ahead of crucial third season

Missi’s presence also presents an issue offensively because he cannot space the floor and still has trouble creating his own shot when a lob threat is taken away.

New Orleans opened the game with a lineup including Missi, Zion Williamson, Herb Jones, Trey Murphy III, and Dejounte Murray. Only Murphy III is a true, consistent shooter, leaving the Pelicans to execute flawlessly in the half-court without another shooter in the lineup.

New Orleans was awful among its starters, shooting just 36% from the field and making just five three-pointers. The bench, led by Bennedict Mathurin’s 13 points, sparked the second-half run that ultimately gave the Pelicans a victory.

Missi’s lack of development is one reason he saw his starts go from 67 games his rookie season to 14 last year. The Cameroonian-native was a late bloomer in basketball, starting around age 15 in an organized league. That lack of prolonged experience shows up at different times on the court, where you can really see his raw skills at play.

If Tuesday night’s game is the norm instead of the exception for Missi, the Pelicans will again have to look elsewhere for a player who can get consistent time on the court. Coach Mosley made it clear pregame not to read too much into the lineups, suggesting this will be a fluid process through preseason and throughout the season as well.

Fans hoping for a promising preseason start didn’t get much of a confidence booster from the Pelicans’ starting five. Missi especially, after being hyped up for much of the summer, was a letdown against lesser competition on Tuesday night.

New Orleans will quickly have a chance to redeem itself when the team travels to Miami on Thursday to play the Heat. Missi and the Pelicans need to play better to build any sort of momentum heading into the regular season in two weeks.

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