Jordan Hawkins received the annual “Best Player on the NCAA Champion” boost. He’s widely projected as a lottery pick now; the Pelicans, in search of prospects who complement what is theoretically a winning core, take the proven role player with an elite, immediately translatable skill.
If nothing else, Hawkins will make the net sing. He’s arguably the best shooter on the board: equally deadly spotting up, running off screens, or pulling up. His mechanics are crisp and clean; there’s no wasted movement, no wasted time. He would be well suited to 4-2 pick-and-rolls with Zion Williamson, setting screens and then popping out to the perimeter while Zion rumbles downhill, not unlike what Joel Embiid and J.J. Redick used to do in Philadelphia.
Hawkins’ ancillary skill set is more bare-bones than other lottery prospects, but sometimes all you need to succeed in the NBA is one elite skill and some heart. Hawkins scraps his way to positive possessions on the defensive end and at 6-foot-5, he’s a decent enough athlete to avoid persistent targeting.
He doesn’t have much juice as a ball-handler, but Hawkins will warp the defense plenty with his shooting. When you have a downhill threat of Zion’s caliber — not to mention other offensive hubs like Brandon Ingram, CJ McCollum, and Jonas Valanciunas — it’s hard to overstate the value of a truly elite movement shooter.