In one of the latest episodes of ‘The Old Man and The Three’ podcast, former NBA veteran J.J Redick believes that the New Orleans Pelicans have the ability to win it all this season.
Alongsideco-host Tommy Alter, Redick marvelled at the Pelicans’ ability to be so good so quick, hailing them as “one of the deepest, strongest, most versatile teams in the NBA”.
Redick discussed this following the Pelicans’ recent back-to-back wins over the Phoenix Suns, the team that knocked them out of the playoffs last season although this season, the Pelicans are with the help of their all-star power forward Zion Williamson.
Williamson, despite early injury issues during his short time in the league, has helped his team by averaging 26 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists which did guide them to first in the Western Conference before more recently dropping down to third.
Redick did explore the possibilities of the Pelicans going all the way and winning the NBA Finals which DraftKings, the show’s sponsor, listed them as +1800 to win the NBA Championship, a significant improvement from the +4000 they were listed at before the season began.
The former Magic and Clippers shooting guard also raised the case that Williamson could be a candidate for this year’s MVP trophy stating, “What Zion is doing, especially on both ends of the floor, is impacting winning.
“He’s currently at +2000 odds (to win the MVP), 5% of all bets are on Zion to win MVP, that’s 7th overall.”
Both Redick and Alter did admit that once the injured Brandon Ingram gets back healthy and C.J McCollum begins to shoot and score at his career averages, the team must establish an order on offense.
But what both co-hosts do admit is that the Pelicans can be even better than what their top five offense is currently performing at, which could be a significant component of a potential contending season for New Orleans, something that hasn’t been said since the team was established in 2002.
