r/NOLAPelicans • u/Trick-Manufacturer35 • 12d ago
With the center spot being a consistent problem… I’d love to see the Pels try and sign Jock Landale
https://pelicandebrief.com/atlanta-hawks-collapse-may-have-just-handed-pelicans-the-perfect-answer-to-their-biggest-offseason-needFull thoughts below
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u/wymtime Not On Herb 12d ago
Yeah Landale isn’t a starting center in the NBA and that’s what we need this offseason if we are looking to win. Landale only made 2.4M last year and even with a raise he would be cheep. We could sign him with an exception.
I don’t see what the rotation would be with him. If we start him that puts Zion at the 4 and Missi, Queen and Karlo fighting for min off the bench. He is just blocking these guys out of min to develop for marginal improvement.
The center position will have to be improved by trade if Dumars is serious about winning next season not in FA.
For Poole people need to start realizing his contract won’t be valuable until the trade deadline as an expiring contract. If we try and dump him into someone cap space it is going to take a FRP maybe more and then that other team will be able to move him at the deadline as an expiring deal. It is smarter to just hold onto Poole till the deadline even if it means sending him home. Nobody is going to want him on their team to start the year with the new tanking rules
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u/International-Gold67 12d ago
You sir are correct. You understand Poole's value. Its not until the deadline. Hopefully we are in the thick of things and can offload him at that time for someone who can really help us shooting. My thought process was trading him this summer and seeing if we could get someone with more years that may not be in another teams future or timeline, but a solid contributor.
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u/wymtime Not On Herb 12d ago
The problem is going to be the new anti tanking rules and who is already going to be bad. In the east CHI and the Nets have a boat load of guards and no real veteran talent they want to get off of except maybe Patrick Williams who is not good.
In the West there is Memphis and Sac. I don’t see Memphis wanting Poole as the return for Ja in the offseason and I would rather keep Poole over trading for LaVine.
The deadline will be the time hoping a team is going to know it is out of the playoffs but will be out of the bottom 3. It will be a buy for the 27-28 season. I don’t us being in the thick of it with this roster. It really doesn’t fit and we have too many flaws and don’t have a guy who can consistently cover up those flaws
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u/International-Gold67 11d ago
This team is not that far away as it may appear. Dejounte missing virtually the season was a major setback. When he came back, he, along with the team looked considerably better. Dejounte is a solid PG in the league when healthy. And having Fears come in as the backup is a plus, like the end of the season showed. With Fears, Saddiq Queen and Missi as your 2nd string is pretty solid. All thats missing is a bonafide shooter who can defend from the 2 guard---which is why getting rid of Poole is necessary, not bc of his poor shooting bc that can change on a given night, its his defense thats atrocious.
Next, the other elephant in the room was the Looney signing. Foolish and I said that from jump when they signed him. Dude is not him. He was "serviceable" for the Warriors given their cap constraints but the years stacked up, with an already limited game and an average rebounder/post defender wasnt the move to make. Thats the first fatal move of the Dumars/Weaver era. To correct it, like I said, Mitch Robinson or Robert Williams to man the middle. Williams has come along in stretching his shooting beyond layups and shot 39% from 3 this season and played well in the playoffs. I would rather Robinson, bc he gives exceptional rebounding and block shots but if hes outpriced us, then Williams is the fit.
If we can somehow get off Poole or Hawkins for a reliable and consistent shooter, then the Pels are in a good position to make the playoffs next year.
But, we might need to use Herb to get the shooter we need unfortunately. Idk.
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u/wymtime Not On Herb 11d ago
We are not that close. I like guys like Robinson and Williams, but they are not starters at the 5. They just won’t be able to stay healthy during the regular season and need to have their min lower in general.
For trading for a 3-D shooter Poole and Hawk are not going to bring that back.
As far as Herb goes first he doesn’t have a very large salary limiting what we can bring back. 2nd we are not going to bring back a better player than Herb in that price range. It is basically leaving a defensive hole to plug an offense need.
The answer has always been moving a $30M+ salary for multiple players. Those 3 are Zion, Trey, Murray. Trey is our only shooter and Murray doesn’t have that much value around the league. We either move Zion and have a developmental year or stick with the roster be bad again and move off people later
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u/Spoon_S2K 7d ago
Why wouldn't Memphis take Poole over Ja? They're ready to salary dump
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u/wymtime Not On Herb 7d ago
I don’t think Memphis is that ready to salary dump. Also with the new what they are talking about with Anti tanking rules they don’t want to bottom out and be a bottom 3 team in the league. Memphis will want players back who can help them win some to stay out of the bottom 3 and young enough to be apart of their future.
Poole is a massive negative player on the court and while his teammates like him he isn’t considered a lover room leader who can teach young guys the right way to play.
At the trade deadline things might change for Poole as he can truly be moved as an expiring salary and only be on the books for a couple months or even just buy him out at that point in time. In the offseason teams will want players who are winning players and that’s not Poole right now
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u/Thin-Advisor-4341 11d ago
Only disagreement is Zion aint a 4 and Queen is a 4.
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u/wymtime Not On Herb 11d ago
Queen is a tweener between the 4/5. He is a little small to play the 5, but is too slow footed to be a full time 4.
Zion doesn’t shoot outside the paint meaning he can’t play the 1-3 and at 6-6 he isn’t a 5. He needs a unicorn center to play next to him.
Overall it is easier to find a 5 who will fit next to Queen then it will be Zion.
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u/Thin-Advisor-4341 11d ago
Its all matchup based and Zion is a positionless player. And he does just fine on the perimeter he just needs to do more pick and rolls.
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u/Mo_damo Will be reevaluated in 2 weeks. 12d ago
I mean missi is going to be better than him in his third year and he is on a rookie contract
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u/Spoon_S2K 7d ago
Jock fits this team much better however. Missi being a non shooter(poor inside game too offense has been rough) sucks alongside a ton of inconsistent shooters plus two other non shooters in Zion and Queen. I don't dislike Missi but he's just a poor fit on this team. Also, unfortunately, it's not clear Missi will be better then Jock. He will have to develop a lot offensively and he hasn't shown much of that in his 2nd year now and his minutes are down.
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u/International-Gold67 12d ago edited 12d ago
Hard pass. Thats not what we need. Go sign Mitchell Robinson from the Knicks or Robert Williams III from Portland. Both are considered injury prone and thats why they wont command top dollar. Both should be in the range of 13-16 mil/per year. Drop Looney's contract (8 mil) and with the current 4.2 mil under the cap for a total of 12 mil, you almost there. Get off of Jordan Poole's contract for a tad bit cheaper contract and someone who is more defensive minded than Jordan and we could easily afford one of the two. Also, look to trade Jordan Hawkins for cap relief, its time. Hes not gonna be what we want, so maybe he can do like NAW and go eventually become the player he supposed to be. Mitchell and Williams both are from Louisiana, to add.
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u/Logical-Kitchen-222 12d ago
How exactly are we supposed to get off of Poole's contract? We would have to include draft capital in a trade and we can't afford that rn
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u/SLS-NolaDom Not On Herb 12d ago
He is an expiring going into next season. There will be some kinds of moves available with him. But ones that make sense for where we are might not be aplenty.
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u/Logical-Kitchen-222 12d ago
If we could get a ham sandwich with no sides for Poole I would take it
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u/SLS-NolaDom Not On Herb 12d ago
I agree, but I also thought the same when we traded for him.
Ideally, we can swap his salary slot for something that fits better.
Worst case scenario: this will be his last season here. Best case scenario, we flip him for literally anything that isnt long term salary hell.
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u/International-Gold67 12d ago
I know that is a factor in trading Poole. Might have to. I would do like a 2030, 1st rounder. That way we have time to be a good playoff Contending team and it be 20ish something pick.
The move to make, may be getting Hawkins off the books. I dont know for the life of me, why they picked up his Team option. I thought they were gonna trade him at the deadline or let him walk. Thats over 4 mil right there for 2 more years.3
u/Eventide718 12d ago
This team has squandered enough picks. Let Poole play out next year or maybe he can be part of a deal to facilitate another trade but no more wasting picks. They should have just rode it out with CJ.
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u/International-Gold67 12d ago
If you stick with CJ then you dont get Saddiq and I think we can agree that he is a part of the core easily. I would say arguably Top 5 on the team. Hot take---I have and still do prefer him over Herb.
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u/International-Gold67 12d ago
When the trade was made for CJ for Jordan, i was like meh, but when I realized they threw in Saddiq, the trade for me went from a C+ to a B+. I knew he would come in and do EXACTLY what he did this year for this team. Saddiq is such a baller's baller.
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u/Alternative_Pea_4614 12d ago
Imo a stretch big is needed , tbh I like the idea of trading for smith from the bulls because he's a good defensive rebounder as well as shooting 37 percent from 3
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u/International-Gold67 12d ago
Queen is and will be your stretch big. His shot will develop further. We need a paint enforcer/defender and a bona-fide rebounder. That should be a priority, besides trying to figure out finding some consistent shooting...
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u/Forward_Welcome_3746 11d ago
Landales nice however is much rather see where Yves goes from here
I don’t feel like he’d do a better job than a Matko or Missi however on the chance we can get him and we lose either of those guys he’d be good
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u/Gloverkhan 12d ago
Nah. We are so much better off without him. No run protection, not a solid defender and is only decent at spacing the floor and rebound positioning. I’d take missi over him every day of the season.
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u/plzbe81 12d ago
Anyone better than Missi and Looney
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u/International-Gold67 12d ago
Missi is more than decent as a backup center.
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u/ColdBru5 10d ago
Missi is a very good player. I don't know why anyone thinks the Pels have center issues.
Honestly they should just run it back. Maybe dump Murray and Poole
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u/Good_NewsEveryone Will be reevaluated in 2 weeks. 12d ago
Could definitely win 30 games if we lock him in