New Orleans Pelicans: The Next Great Dynasty

By Timothy An

In the National Basketball Association, every decade comes with a new powerhouse team that dominates the league. In the 1950/60s we had the Bill Russell-led Boston Celtics that won 11 NBA championships. In the 1980’s we had the Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar led “Showtime” Lakers that won 5 NBA championships. In the 1990s, we had the Michael Jordan-Scottie Pippen led Chicago Bulls that struck fear into every opponent, going on to win 6 NBA championships. In the 2000s to early 2010s, we had the Tim Duncan and Gregg Popovich led San Antonio Spurs who won 5 NBA championships. The list of dynasties goes on-and-on, but as we near the end of the Golden State Warriors dynasty (as their core starts to age) there will be a new one. Based around young phenom Zion Williamson, I believe the New Orleans Pelicans are set up to be the next great NBA dynasty.

The Anthony Davis Trade

Anthony Davis was a 6x All-Star with the Pelicans. (Nick Wass/AP)

In late January of 2019, Anthony Davis officially requested a trade, demanding to be dealt to a bigger market before his impending decision to deny the supermax contract extension. The media ridiculed the Pelicans, calling them a poor franchise that couldn’t even retain a once in a generation talent. When David Griffin took over as Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations, he pulled the trigger and sent Anthony Davis to Los Angeles, getting a king's ransom in return. In return for Davis, the Pelicans got SG Josh Hart, PG Lonzo Ball, SF Brandon Ingram, the 4th overall pick in the 2019 draft (De’Andre Hunter), the Lakers 2022 First-Round Pick, the right to swap 2023 First-Rounders, the Lakers 2024 First-Round Pick, and a right to defer the 2024 Pick to 2025. The amount of young talent the Pelicans were able to accumulate in this trade was so plentiful that one could argue that the Pelicans actually won this trade, even though Anthony Davis and the Lakers have already won a ring in their first season. While the Lakers did get an established superstar, the Pelicans have set themselves up for success for years to come. 

The Jrue Holiday Trade

Jrue Holiday played with the Pelicans for seven seasons (Michael Conroy/AP)

On November 17th, 2020, it was reported that the Milwaukee Bucks and the New Orleans Pelicans came to an agreement to send Jrue Holiday to the Bucks for Eric Bledsoe and a bunch of draft picks. To be specific, the Pelicans will be sending Holiday along with the 60th overall pick in the 2020 draft to the Bucks. In return, the Pelicans will be getting PG/SG Eric Bledsoe, along with the Bucks 24th overall pick in the 2020 draft, the Bucks 2025 First-Round Pick, the Buck 2027 First-Round Pick, and the right to swap First-Round picks with the Bucks in 2024 and 2026. The Pelicans already boast a young roster and are continuing to accumulate draft capital to create a future of success for this franchise. 

Pelicans Projected Roster 2021

PG: Lonzo Ball (23), Frank Jackson (22), E’Twaun Moore (31)

SG: Eric Bledsoe (30), J.J. Reddick (36), Nickeil Alexander-Walker (22)

SF: Brandon Ingram (23), Josh Hart (25), Zylan Cheatham (23)

PF: Zion Williamson (20), Derrick Favors (28), Kenrich Williams (24)

C: Jaxson Hayes (20), Jahlil Okafor (24)

Pelicans Future First-Round Picks

2020: 13th Pick, 24th Pick (via Milwaukee)

2021: Pelicans First-Rounder

2022: Pelicans First-Rounder, Lakers First-Rounder

2023: Pelicans First-Rounder (Option to Swap with Lakers)

2024: Pelicans First-Rounder (Option to Swap with Bucks), Lakers First-Rounder (Option to defer to 2025)

2025: Pelicans First-Rounder, Bucks First-Rounder

2026: Pelicans First-Rounder (Option to Swap with Bucks)

2027: Pelicans First-Rounder, Bucks First-Rounder

Three ReasonS the Pelicans Will be a Dynasty

1). The Superstar(s)

Zion Williamson was the first-overall pick by the Pelicans in the 2019 draft. (USA TODAY Sports)

Throughout the history of the NBA, there is one thing that every single dynasty has had in common. That one thing is a superstar. The Pelicans, in my opinion, have the luxury of having two potential superstars on their team. First, there is Zion Williamson, the first overall pick out of Duke University. In his rookie season, he only played 24 games due to a knee injury that kept him out to start the season. He ended the season averaging 22.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game. The most impressive thing about this performance is the fact that he was on minute restrictions throughout the year. Since he was coming off a serious knee injury, he was only limited to play about 20-25 minutes per game and was still able to put up these amazing rookie numbers. If Zion Williamson can build off this great start and meet his expectations, we are looking at a once in a generation type talent that has the potential to be a future MVP. 

The next player I believe has superstar potential is Brandon Ingram, the 2nd overall pick in the 2017 draft out of Duke University. Since leaving the Lakers, Ingram has impressed as a tall, lanky small forward/power forward hybrid. In his first season with the Pelicans, he averaged 23.8 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game. Ingram is still only 23 years old, and as he continues to build out his long frame, I expect him to progress quickly into a top ten player in the league. 

2). The Age

Brandon Ingram was named to his first All-Star selection in 2020 with the Pelicans (Tyler Kaufman/AP)

This team didn’t even make the playoffs last year, so you may be asking why I think they have a chance at becoming a dominant dynasty? The main reason is their age. First, let's take a look at their two potential superstars in Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram. Williamson has been able to put up incredible numbers while being on minute restrictions at just 20 years old. He is basically a sophomore in college, and therefore, has at least seven to eight years until he reaches his prime. One could argue that NBA players don't reach their prime until anywhere from the age of 27-31, but it is almost an undisputed fact that NBA players don’t reach their prime until at least 27. Brandon Ingram is only 23, Lonzo Ball is 24, Jaxson Hayes is 21, and Josh Hart is 25, creating a core group of guys for the Pelicans franchise to build upon for years to come. 

3). The Draft Capital 

Trajan Langdon became the Pelicans General Manager in 2019 (NBA.com)

Above, I listed every single first-round pick the Pelicans have over the next seven years. In total, they have 13 picks over these next seven years. You may be thinking, wow that’s a lot of young talent this team will accumulate, but it goes deeper than that. First of all, the accumulation of this many draft picks allows the team to save money in their salary cap. Players on rookie contracts are cheap, and this cheap “labor” allows the Pelicans front office to have flexibility when they sign their young stars to contract extensions and when they sign free agents during the offseason. They also get to use these draft picks as assets when it comes to trading. There will come a time when the Pelican’s young players will develop into a great basketball team. When the Pelicans are looking to add a talented player to give them a final push into championship contention, there will be a plethora of assets to choose from with all this draft capital. Ultimately, having this much draft capital allows the Pelicans to acquire young new talent for cheap prices, create cap space for future contract extensions and free agents, and allows the Pelicans to have the flexibility to make a blockbuster trade for new talent.

The NBA better watch out because while the veterans are creating superteams in Brooklyn, Los Angeles, Golden State, Philadelphia, and Milwaukee, there is a young superteam down in New Orleans ready to become the next great NBA dynasty.


Follow Timothy on Twitter @timothyan1