2017 NBA Draft: How Markelle Fultz would impact every lottery team
By Max Holm
New Orleans Pelicans – 1.1% Chance of Winning Lottery
Most of us assumed the New Orleans Pelicans, regardless of fit, would be destined for the playoffs after they acquired DeMarcus Cousins from the Sacramento Kings. Needless to say they fell way short. That means unless the Pelicans land in the top-3, which is highly unlikely, they’ll lose their pick to the Kings.
But let’s pretend New Orleans wins the lottery and gets to add Fultz to the duo of Anthony Davis and Cousins. It wasn’t a great debut for Cousins in New Orleans, but he, Davis and the coaches now have an entire offseason to figure out how to make their roster work.
By adding Fultz, the Pelicans not only would have the perfect lead guard to facilitate and score around those big men, but they would have a fallback for Cousins not panning out. Cousins hits free agency in 2018. Be it him walking or a bad fit overall, Fultz would mean New Orleans still has plenty of potential alongside Davis.
The Brow is just 24 years old, so the window for the Pelicans is still wide open. Having a special lead guard like Fultz means the Pelicans would be set for the future with or without Cousins. And with the impending free agency of Jrue Holiday, the Pelicans may be more likely to let him walk and save money.