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NBA Free Agency 2017: 5 offseason needs for the New Orleans Pelicans

By Jason Klaer

March 5, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward DeMarcus Cousins (0) grabs a rebound in front of Los Angeles Lakers center Tarik Black (28) during the second half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
March 5, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward DeMarcus Cousins (0) grabs a rebound in front of Los Angeles Lakers center Tarik Black (28) during the second half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports /
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April 11, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans guard Jordan Crawford (4) shoots against Los Angeles Lakers forward Thomas Robinson (15) and guard Tyler Ennis (11) during the first half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
April 11, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans guard Jordan Crawford (4) shoots against Los Angeles Lakers forward Thomas Robinson (15) and guard Tyler Ennis (11) during the first half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports /

3. Beef up reserves

To say the least, the Pelicans are looking for support to the starting lineup. Although the situation could be much worse, New Orleans has seen little to no production off the bench. The Pelicans were 11th in the NBA in bench scoring (37.0 points/game). Being in the middle of the pack is not terrible. Outside of Davis and Cousins, the Pelicans possess average rebounders. Alexis Ajinca and Omer Asik can crash the glass but do not see a significant amount of playing time due to the success of the starting big men and their own limitations.

Turning to the guards, Jrue Holiday cannot do everything. Tim Frazier is a young player and beginning to play well but New Orleans cannot afford to wait on what the future holds. One down side to Davis and Cousins is the size of both contracts. If Cousins were to stay a Pelican, the franchise would be tied down from just two contracts. This limits the amount of support the team can receive.

Unfortunately, this puts the Pelicans between a rock and a hard place. Several diamonds in the rough exist for the Pelicans. For example, could Tyreke Evans make a possible return to New Orleans? Evans is a free agent and was a piece in the Cousins trade. He is a solid facilitator but is also not afraid to score, although his inefficiency and poor defense were a problem in the past. Thabo Sefolosha is another possibility for the Pelicans. This defensive-minded veteran would be a nice touch to the backcourt of New Orleans.

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