New Orleans Pelicans Veteran "Is Bought In" on What the Team Needs From Him

The New Orleans Pelicans are gearing up for the 2024-25 season, and it may see a veteran in a different role than he is used to.

Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

The New Orleans Pelicans are gearing up for what looks to be a promising 2024-25 season.

After finishing last year with a 49-33 record, the team brought in another guard to add to the already stacked starting five.

Having Dejounte Murray on the team now has brought questions as to who the "odd man out" might be.

With Murray, Herbert Jones, Jose Alvarado, and CJ McCollum all vying for minutes in a guard position, the Pelicans know that it is an enviable position to be in, but it may not be the easiest decision to make.

With media day underway, New Orleans Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations David Griffin may have hinted at what the team intends to do.

"CJ is bought in," Griffin told reports Monday, "on whatever the role is."

McCollum is the longest NBA-tenured member of the Pelicans roster, and oldest at 33-years-old.

He is the current president of the NBA Players Association and is well-respected around the league for what he does on and off the court.

Despite that, it is clear to see that McCollum's game has taken a step back over the last few seasons.

He is entering his third full season with New Orleans, where he has averaged 21.1 points per game on a 45.4 percent field goal clip across 34 minutes per game.

Those numbers have fallen year-over-year, however, with his points per game going from 24.3 the year he was acquired to 20.0 last season.

The veteran has played 23,432 regular season minutes across his career, and the wear and tear may be starting to show.

The decline in his production last year could also be from Zion Williamson being healthy for 70 games, something that he had not done before in his career.

With Williamson on the court, many of the scoring opportunities go to him as he is the face of the franchise and an intimidating presence in the paint.

On Monday, Griffin's comments may have hinted that McCollum will be coming off the bench going forward.

This would be beneficial for the team and the veteran, as it would allow the team to put its best five guys on the court to start the game while allowing McCollum more scoring opportunities coming off of a career-best 42.9 percent clip from beyond the arc.

McCollum could easily compete for the Sixth Man of the Year Award, potentially winning it in a landslide, while helping the Pelicans on their quest to advance past the first round of the NBA Playoffs.