New Orleans Pelicans: Players to Target For Your Fantasy Basketball Team

Blah, blah, blah, Fantasy Sports is among the nation’s top-growing industries. We’re sure many of you play Fantasy Basketball, so it seemed a good idea to preview five New Orleans Pelicans who could impact your team this spring.

Anthony Davis

Naturally, as one of the best players in the entire league, Anthony Davis remains near the top of the list as far as best fantasy pickups. When drafting your fantasy team, it’s important to target players that are versatile—players that can do more than just score the basketball. That’s where Davis proves to be one of the most valuable assets in the NBA.

Davis is a phenomenal offensive player, but also excels at hitting the boards as well as protecting the rim. Over the course of a fantasy season, those rebounds and blocks can make the difference, and you’d be hard pressed to find a more versatile big man than Davis.

There is, however, one major drawback to drafting the Brow to your fantasy team: he has yet to play a full 82-game season. In fact, Davis has yet to hit the 70-game mark in his four years in the league. Davis has suffered a wide range of injuries through his career, the most recent being a sprained ankle that could possibly keep him sidelined for the New Orleans Pelicans’ season opener.

Davis is going to go near the first round of every Fantasy Basketball draft, and if you have the chance, you’re obviously going to draft him. His multi-faceted production is invaluable in all Fantasy formats, and the fact that he could improve on even his sterling 2014-15 numbers this year is beyond exciting for Fantasy owners and Pelicans fans alike.

The missed time is a major issue as far as fantasy basketball goes, as the absence of a first round caliber player could be a death sentence for your team. With Davis continuing to miss time, he could also continue to slide down draft boards, but he is still undoubtedly a player worth grabbing in the first round of any fantasy draft.

Mar 28, 2016; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans guard Jrue Holiday (11) drives past New York Knicks center Robin Lopez (8) during the second half of a game at the Smoothie King Center. The Pelicans defeated the Knicks 99-91. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

Jrue Holiday

Jrue Holiday is experiencing a unique and extremely saddening situation this offseason. Recently, his wife Lauren was diagnosed with a brain tumor while pregnant with their child. Fortunately, Lauren gave birth to a healthy baby girl early last month, but she’s still awaiting surgery for her tumor and Jrue will be out indefinitely as he cares for his wife. Obviously, basketball (and fantasy basketball especially) are the least of his concerns.

With no timetable set for his return, Jrue could go undrafted in many fantasy leagues, but when he is on the court, he is undoubtedly one of the best players on this Pelicans roster alongside Davis. The problem with Jrue’s time in New Orleans is that he’s struggled to stay on the court even more than the Brow. In his three seasons in the Big Easy, Jrue has appeared in 34, 40, and 65 games respectively.

If they can develop an even better rapport in the pick-and-roll and in transition, both of these players to benefit from an uptick in efficiency and pure production. They are the only two obvious pluses on offense amid a roster stacked toward defense, so Jrue will have every chance in the world to get the ball and run the offense upon his return.

No matter how talented the player, missing that much time immediately drops your stock to near zero, but if Holiday is able to make it back to the team this season and stay healthy, he could definitely become a sleeper pickup later on in the season.

Oct 4, 2016; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans guard Buddy Hield (24) passes as Indiana Pacers guard Joe Young (3) defends during the second half of a game at the Smoothie King Center. The Pacers defeated the Pelicans 113-96. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

Buddy Hield

Buddy Hield is young and untested, but his body of work at the college level proves that he has the potential to be a solid sleeper pick in larger leagues.

In his senior year at the University of Oklahoma, Hield was arguably the best offensive player in the country, shooting 46 percent from behind the three-point line and averaging 25 points per game (per Sports-Reference) en route a Naismith award for college basketball’s best player and a first-team All-American selection.

Hield was phenomenal at the college level, but as he transitions to the professional game he’ll need to prove that he can be more than just a role player. He can shoot lights out, but his ability to grab rebounds, distribute the ball, or be a stalwart on the defensive end is still questionable. That’s not to say that he can’t improve, just that there isn’t enough evidence to support his fantasy stock yet.

He’s probably someone most Fantasy Basketball players will stay away from in all but the deepest leagues, but if you need a boost in three-point shooting every so often, there are worse guys to roster than Hield. He won’t be over-extended and hurt your team, but the upside is there, especially if New Orleans decides this season isn’t a playoff season.

Regardless, Hield will be a solid scorer off the bench for the New Orleans Pelicans and has the potential to evolve into even more as he acclimates to the NBA. For now, Hield should be drafted with caution and regarded as a last-ditch option until we can see how big of a role he’ll have in the Pelicans offense. 

E’Twaun Moore

One of the Pelicans’ higher profile additions this offseason, E’Twaun Moore figures to provide a much-needed offensive presence on the perimeter alongside Hield, and that alone could bolster his fantasy stock to the point of a sleeper pick.

Moore has experienced a relatively successful preseason, posting totals of 25 points and 19 points in two of the team’s four games, leading the way both times. After serving as mostly a three-point threat in Chicago, Moore figures to have a larger role in the New Orleans Pelicans’ offense this season, and could prove a nice fantasy asset if he can indeed sustain a scoring and play-making increase.

For the Bulls last season, Moore shot a career-high 45 percent from long range and started 22 games. While he only averaged 7.5 points per game, he figures to have a larger role in New Orleans, thus allowing him to score more points. Moore will likely either be the primary backup at point guard to Tim Frazier and Jrue Holiday or the starting shooting guard. Either way, look for a starter’s load of minutes.

Minutes increases are among the easiest predictors of newfound success in Fantasy Basketball. Give a guy more minutes, and he’ll trend more toward his per-36 minute averages as he gets closer to 36 minutes. Easy, right?

Due to the fact that Moore will be a much more relevant offensive threat in New Orleans than he was in Chicago, it’s possible that he could wind up becoming a fantasy sleeper later on in the season.

Jan 8, 2016; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans guard Tyreke Evans (1) drives down the court as he is defended by Indiana Pacers forward Myles Turner (33) during the first quarter of the game at the Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Bush-USA TODAY Sports

Tyreke Evans

This injury narrative sure is getting pretty old huh? I’m sure Alvin Gentry feels the same way. Tyreke Evans is out and will be out for a large portion of the season, adding onto the slew of injuries he’s had to deal with throughout his career in Sacramento and New Orleans.

After playing in a career-high 79 games in the 2014-15 season, Evans experienced yet another major injury setback and only appeared in 25 games a season ago. Obviously, with his current injury, this season will be more of the same.

When he’s on the court, Evans gets to the basket with the best of them. He’s strong, quick and attacks the basket hard, averaging 16.7 points per game since he entered the league in 2009. His outside shooting touch is subpar, but he rebounds and distributes well, so his value is decent when he’s healthy.

However, Tyreke struggles when shooting the ball, and will continue to do so as he changes his game and focuses on his shot more. Yet last season, he did improve in that area, shooting 39% from three in his 25 games played, per Basketball-Reference. If he does get on the court, that will be the place to look for a boost in Fantasy Basketball production.

Depending on when Evans is able to make his debut this season, he too could serve as a solid midseason pickup.

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