Tim Frazier Emerging At Point Guard For New Orleans Pelicans
The New Orleans Pelicans were facing a crisis at the point guard position following the indefinite absence of Jrue Holiday, but Tim Frazier has emerged as a viable candidate following a stellar performance in the preseason.
Tim Frazier has simply proven to be the answer for all of the point guard problems facing the New Orleans Pelicans as the start of the regular season approaches.
The team will be without former All-Star point guard Jrue Holiday for an undetermined amount of time so he can tend to his wife as she undergoes a procedure to have a brain tumor removed.
For the past three years, Tyreke Evans had filled in for Holiday, but he is expected to be sidelined for several weeks after a blood clot in his left calf was discovered following offseason knee surgery.
To fill the void left behind by the team has turned to Frazier, an undrafted point guard out of Penn State.
Frazier has ended any competition for the starting point guard position, severely outplaying Langston Galloway, a free agent signing this summer, throughout the preseason.
Following four games, Frazier ranks third among all performers in assists, dishing out 7.3 per game.
The 6-foot-1 guard impressed during a Pelicans victory over Houston, nearly submitting a triple-double during a 124-117 loss.
Only two preseason games remain, but after posting 7.5 points, 7.3 assists and 5.0 rebounds per game, Frazier has solidified himself as the starter.
The path to the starting job in New Orleans was a treacherous one for Frazier.
Boston brought in Frazier for training camp two years ago, only to release him a week before the start of the season.
A pair of stints in the NBA Developmental League, with the Maine Red Claws, enabled him multiple opportunities to latch onto an NBA roster.
Philadelphia signed him twice signed him to a 10-day contract, before ultimately releasing him.
A month later, the Trail Blazers brought him in to compete for their backup point guard job, but in a year, he made only five appearances with the team prior to being cut.
New Orleans cycled through point guards a year ago, starting six different players at the position when it signed Frazier to a 10-day contract.
The same day he signed his first contract with the Pelicans, Frazier logged 14 points, nine assists, three rebounds and a steal against Sacramento.
Another 10-day contract followed, and the Pelicans opted to retain him for the remainder of the season following a remarkable stint to close the season.
Fourteen games into his tenure with New Orleans, Frazier earned his first start, resulting in 12 points, nine assists, six rebounds and three steals against the 76ers, part of a slew of superb outings he registered with the team.
Frazier submitted a 19 point, 13 assist, three steal effort in Brooklyn and closed out the season with a career-high 15 assists against Minnesota.
In 16 appearances, Frazier posted 13.1 points, 7.5 assists, 4.4 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game. He even shot the ball well from all over the court, converting 45 percent of his attempts from the field and 41.9 percent of his 3-point attempts.
More importantly, the team provided him plenty of time on the floor. Frazier played an average of 29.3 minutes per game during his stint with the team a year ago.
The Pelicans offense averaged 102.5 points per game with Frazier in the lineup, the same figure the team had posted throughout the year.
Maintaining the same scoring average was a particularly impressive feat, considering Holiday, Evans and All-Star forward Anthony Davis were all sidelined with injuries when Frazier was playing.
Frazier has finally found some stability in New Orleans, agreeing to a two-year, $4.1 million deal with the team three days after the moratorium was lifted over the summer.
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Sustaining his success will clearly be a challenge, but he has emerged as the most potent point guard on the roster, even in a reduced role.
During his 16 appearances last season, he averaged 13 shots a night, a figure that has been reduced to 4.5 shots a night this month.
The 25-year-old is even converting 50 percent of his 3-point shots in preseason play, a particularly stunning feat considering he converted just 31 percent of his attempts from beyond the arc during his college career.
The Pelicans aren’t sure when either Holiday or Evans will be available to play again, but Frazier has provided the team with a reliable option at point guard with the regular season set to begin in just eight days.