New Orleans Pelicans: 3 big questions heading 2018-19 NBA season

2. Can the Pelicans sustain success with their up-tempo system?

Following Cousins’ injury and the trade for Mirotic, the Pelicans went all-in on their up-tempo system that allowed Davis to be surrounded by shooters while playing at center. Holiday thrived as he took on more offensive responsibilities and as mentioned earlier, Davis went supernova following the loss of his big man partner.

From Feb. 1 to the end of the regular season, New Orleans posted the league’s top pace, as they used the league’s fourth-ranked defense to post a 21-11 record over the final third of the season.

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The second-half of the regular season coupled with the playoffs proved that the Pelicans could achieve success using this style of play, but will they be able to do so over the course of an entire regular season?

Although teams will have more time to prepare for this new-look team, there is reason to believe that the Pelicans’ up-tempo system will serve them well during the upcoming season. From capitalizing on scheduling advantages and tired opponents to using their transition play to catch disengaged teams off guard, the Pelicans will be able to run teams off the court during the grind of a 82-game regular season.

There’s a reason why the “Seven Seconds or Less” Suns were so effective during the regular season, as they used their top-ranked pace and quick style of play to catch opponents of guard. While New Orleans won’t have as elite of a offense those Suns teams did, the Pelicans should be comparable on that end of the floor while posting a better defense, which should translate to consistent regular season success.