New Orleans Pelicans: 2019-20 NBA season preview

Predictions

While the New Orleans Pelicans integrate four new starters and four rookies into their rotation, it’s probably too much to expect much more than a legitimate run at the .500 mark that will ultimately fall just short.

But there will be a lot to like in New Orleans in 2019-20, as the kids get their first look at real NBA action and the veterans are there to guide and lead.

J.J. Redick will be a huge shot in the arm for the second unit, teaming with holdover E’Twaun Moore to give the reserve group a lot of ability to stretch the floor. Jrue Holiday could be poised for a big season if he can avoid the nagging injuries that have hampered him during most of his time with the Pelicans.

Zion Williamson is the odds-on favorite for Rookie of the Year and will be given lots of room and playing time to live up to that hype, as the cupboard is not well-stocked in the frontcourt, where it’s Zion, Derrick Favors and Jahlil Okafor along with a couple of unproven rookies in Jaxson Hayes and Nicolo Melli.

If New Orleans falls short of expectations, it will likely be a product of their frontcourt not having the depth to stand up over 48 minutes a night.

The backcourt and wing, on the other hand, are very crowded, so there could be more dealing coming — likely after mid-December when the 4,052* free agents from this summer (*–estimated total) can be traded.

New Orleans has trade chips in a ton of future draft picks, as well as wings like Moore and Darius Miller and guards Josh Hart and Frank Jackson, should David Griffin choose to try to move something to bolster the club up front.

If the Pelicans can get to 38 or 39 wins, that would be both a five or six-win improvement over the final year of the Anthony Davis era and a very solid start to the rebuilding process.

It might not end in a playoff berth, but the New Orleans Pelicans will make strides forward in 2019-20.