The New Orleans experiment will be a failure
The Pelicans only have one year to make this twin towers approach work. Unfortunately for the fans in New Orleans the team simply doesn’t have the supporting cast to make the team competitive in the Western Conference. The Pelicans will lack shooting and defensive versatility from the wing and has virtually no depth.
Trading two lottery picks for Jrue Holiday and another two picks for Demarcus Cousins leaves the organization with no youth outside of Anthony Davis. Additionally, all three members of the star core are likely to miss significant time. On average, Anthony Davis and Demarcus Cousins miss 10-15 games a year while Holiday can be counted on to miss 20-30 games a year.
Lastly, Alvin Gentry is just an average coach at best. His only successful season came when he coached the 7SOL Suns after the team’s league blistering offense was fully established under Steve Nash and Amar’e Stoudemire. This is a Pelicans team that is heading for a disappointing season. With no youth or cap space available, Cousins will certainly look elsewhere for a better situation.