New Orleans Pelicans: Starting lineup locks, fringe, and potential break-ins

Locks for the starting lineup

Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram, Steven Adams

Zion Williamson is the face of this team, as he has been since the moment the New Orleans Pelicans won the NBA Draft Lottery. His preseason games were must-watch television, the league’s television partners are stocking their schedules with Pelicans games, and many hypothesize the NBA changed the playoff rules for the season restart this summer to give Zion a chance at the playoffs.

That means he will absolutely be starting for this team whenever he suits up. He is a physical marvel, gliding across the court and leaping through the rafters in a way that shouldn’t be possible given his size. He has reportedly lost weight this offseason, and if he can do that without sacrificing his strength and explosion then he could take a step forward as an All-Star level player even in his second season.

With Williamson at power forward, Brandon Ingram is penciled in at small forward. The former Duke Blue Devil made a huge leap last season, making the All-Star team and locking in a maximum contract. Despite playing around the same number of minutes per game as the two previous seasons, Ingram set career highs in points, rebounds, assists, steals and 3-pointers made. He is a pillar of the Pelicans’ future and will start alongside Williamson.

Finally, the center position is locked up. Despite using a top-10 pick last season on center Jaxson Hayes, the Pelicans traded assets to the Oklahoma City Thunder (including a first-round pick) to acquire bruising center Steven Adams, tacking on a lucrative contract extension in the process. Given that level of investment, he is a lock for the starting lineup. As a player Adams is physical, walling off the paint and fighting hard for rebounding position. He is a solid player on a team that needed a few of those.

Barring injuries or the unexpected, this is the starting frontcourt for this team. The synergy is good, but not perfect. Ideally, Williamson could play alongside a true unicorn center, who can guard the rim and hit 3-pointers. Adams does the former and not the latter. That being said, this team was soft in the middle last year, and Williamson thrived alongside Derrick Favors who similarly is not much of a floor spacer. If Ingram’s long-range shooting holds up he is a perfect fit at the 3.