Power Index Projections Disappointing Rank for New Orleans Pelicans

The New Orleans Pelicans improved their roster in the offseason and could see their season last longer than ever before.

Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

The New Orleans Pelicans are a better team today than the one that won 49 games last season.

Even without a "true" starting center, the Pelicans' roster is a balanced entity with capable hands on the offensive and defensive sides of the court.

The offseason addition of Dejounte Murray to the roster makes the rotations even deeper, and when forward Trey Murphy III returns from his injury, could see veteran CJ McCollum contributing off the bench in a super-sub/sixth-man role, making their depth a scary subject for opposing teams.

Even with the improved depth and the addition of a true point guard in Murray, ESPN's projection system does not like New Orleans' odds in the coming year.

Their NBA Basketball Power Index gives the Pelicans just a 3.8 percent chance to make the NBA Finals, the ninth-best odds in the Western Conference.

Sitting just ahead of New Orleans with a 4.0 percent chance to make the NBA Finals is the Los Angeles Lakers, whose big name is a near-40 forward who has seen his offensive production deteriorate year-over-year, and is entering his 22nd season in the Association.

For the Pelicans, their big names (plural) include Brandon Ingram (27), Murray (28), McCollum (33), and of course one of the biggest names in the sport (literally and figuratively) Zion Williamson (24).

That is not even to mention the role players that New Orleans has in Herb Jones, Jose Alvarado, Murphy, and Jordan Hawkins, all of whom will play a big part on both sides of the court for the team in the coming campaign.

The roster's construction over the last few years has been spectacular, even without a "true" starting center.

While the speculation around the team may be on whether or not Zion can stay healthy, and if Ingram will be with the team for the duration of the season, Zion showed his endurance with 70 games last year, while playing the third-most minutes (19:00) in the first preseason game on Monday.

Ingram is unlikely to be traded ahead of the NBA Trade Deadline if the team is contending for a high playoff seed, which is very likely.

Having the Pelicans as the ninth-best team in the Western Conference is not an accurate assessment of where this team and its talent lie.

We are approaching one of the most promising seasons this franchise has seen in its 23 seasons of existence.

Ninth place in the Western Conference would be nothing short of a disaster year.