It was just the preseason, but a bearded Zion Williamson played how New Orleans Pelicans’ fans hoped he would, and his co-star’s absence was more frustrating than it was noticed.
Zion Williamson was at the top of the offensive hierarchy and looked sensational. In 19 minutes (all in the first half), he had 16 points on 8/11 shooting. There was an obvious onus to put the ball in his hands, and it looked immediately enticing. Williamson assisted on the game’s first three buckets: two Herb Jones three-pointers and a Daniel Theis layup. Even when his passes didn’t end in assists, they were simple and the correct plays to make. The second half was where his highlights came. There were signature wild layups. He was going straight through Jonathan Isaac and Paolo Banchero. And he even grabbed eight rebounds!
The offence could look directionless when Zion Williamson didn’t create an immediate advantage (no Javonte Green running floaters, please). But it was beautiful when CJ McCollum took a Zion pass and quickly broke down the defence to generate a wide-open corner three (shoutout to Daniel Theis’s screen). Coach Willie Green’s preseason plan seemed less about running sets and more about putting the ball in great players’ hands.
When Zion came off the floor, that great player was Dejounte Murray. Count on the secondary offence to involve him running a pick-and-roll with a centre and shooters spacing the floor. He was very patient during such possessions, keeping his dribble alive to get the defender on his hip for a mid-range shot. If not a shot, he nicely timed a lob or bounce pass to the roller or a kick-out pass to one of the said shooters.
It’s hard to tell who those shooters will be during the regular season. In this game, they were Jordan Hawkins, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, and Herb Jones. I think it’s safe to say Trey Murphy III will play over JRE when the team’s fully healthy. And Herb should stay in there. But Hawkins’ spot isn’t guaranteed, and it’s likely BI is in that lineup instead of him. That is to say, Ingram’s absence this game made the Pelicans’ rotational vision frustratingly blurry.
However, we can still make some assumptions about the lineups. If the starting lineup of Murray, CJ, BI, Herb, and Z that BI supposedly leaked at training camp (first spotted by Shamit Dua) is true, then the first two subs will be Trey and Theis in for Z and CJ. That leaves Murray with Theis setting screens as Trey, BI and Herb space the floor. That sounds great in theory, but it means BI must shoot threes, and the defence must respect his shot.
He has reportedly been doing so in training camp—and Willie Green straight up said it at media day—but it would’ve been nice to see him for at least one quarter in the preseason, especially if his connection with Murray will be the offense for a good portion of the real games.
Jordan Hawkins looked amazing, and lineups with him and Trey around Zion or Murray are far more salivating than they would be with BI. Plus, they would rely on players who desire to shoot deep rather than those who have resisted it their whole career. I’m sure we will get a look at BI before the regular season begins, but one of the reasons he and the team can’t come to a contract agreement is the lack of available playtime data between Ingram and Zion. It is a disservice to pass on free opportunities to acquire that data.
Adding Ingram and Murphy’s length to this defence will be exciting. Although against a below-average offensive team in a preseason game, the Pelicans stole the ball thirteen times. Murray had some shaky moments, but his and Jones’ activity is the first step to living up to expectations.
Daniel Theis’s six field goals also showed enough spacing ability to give the Pelicans hope, albeit small (literally), when they face the league’s behemoths.
If Ingram does end up firing off threes in the Pelicans preseason rematch against the Magic this weekend, it could be a truly special season in the Bayou.