New Orleans Pelicans: Getting over the Hill

Already devoid of wing depth, the New Orleans Pelicans have lost forward Solomon Hill for most of the season with a hamstring injury. The Pelicans will have a few options in replacing his minutes in the rotation.

Prior to the Solomon Hill injury, the New Orleans Pelicans‘ wing depth was already very much in question and the subject of many jokes among NBA Twitter. The recent injury news has ballooned the jokes into a full-on crisis.

First things first: Solomon Hill is an average NBA player. He is not an elite small forward talent that is irreplaceable, but he is the most polished NBA wing currently on the Pelicans’ roster. Also, his fit on the team cannot be understated.

Solomon Hill was the team’s best perimeter defender. His 1.5 defensive box plus/minus (DBPM) was the highest among Pelicans perimeter players. Hill is long and athletic enough to guard either the 3 or the 4, and his versatility gives Anthony Davis freedom to roam and protect the paint.

All of this is to reinforce that while Solomon Hill is overpaid and largely a one-way player, he is a huge reason New Orleans finished as a top-10 defense. His versatility gave the Pelicans a number of options.

Moving forward, the New Orleans Pelicans will be scrambling to replace what Hill brought to the team. Luckily, there is still a fair number of options left in free agency or trade options to explore. Here are some of the potential options.