re: KOC: League sources "expect" Pelicans to be aggressive in trade market

I believe it again reveals poor roster construction and scheme. The roster construction problem has been beaten to death, but an overlooked issue is the scheme. Pels scheme was to get the ball in Zion or BI's hands. They deemed it easier to just get the ball in their hands as an initiator or off elbow sets for Zion and BI respectively. The results were BI and Zion getting beat up throughout the year and compromised going into the playoffs.

There certainly are problems with BI,CJ, and Zion on the court together. The main problem is that we now know Zion is an attacking wing, not a traditional 4 as advertised. With Herb or Dyson added for defensive purposes, you essentially operate with 4 wings and a post as your primary lineup. Again, I'm not opposed to keeping Val or Nance as both can contribute situationally. However, neither fit schematically as a starter but Griff didn't give Coach Green other options. You pretty much nailed it with your assessment. Val slows the pace to a crawl and Nance is undersized.

Obviously there is a ground-swell to shake the etch-a-sketch and start over. I believe this would be short-sighted as the teams' identity is forming. I wouldn't advocate for re-arranging the deck chairs but your core (Zion, BI, TM3, Herb, Hawk and Dyson) are all well south of the 30-year age mark and still improving. CJ is a perfect sixth man, however, I'm not sure if he wants to accept that role and Hawk will definitely contend for those minutes as well. *I'd like add Jose to the list but believe he is situational due to his size.

Pels off-season todo list is to:

1. Acquire a more athletic big that can space vertically or horizontally
2. Acquire a primary ballhandler who is a threat above the arc
3. Scheme a more diverse offense

The first two efforts will greatly help the ability to do the third.