Previous Team Recaps: Utah Jazz, Washington Wizards, Charlotte Hornets
New Orleans Pelicans 2024-2025 Season Recap
Record: 21-61 (14th, West)
Offensive Rating: 109.7 (25th)
Defensive Rating: 119.1 (29th)
Net Rating: -9.4 (29th)
Pace: 99.77 (15th)
2025 NBA Draft Picks: 12.5 percent chance of winning the lottery; no other draft picks
The future looked bright for New Orleans before the season started. Zion Williamson was on the mend, new addition Dejounte Murray offered elite production as a scorer, rebounder and facilitator, and Brandon Ingram rounded out a promising “Big 3” in the Bayou. C.J. McCollum was ready to provide veteran leadership and solid scoring, and defensive stud Herb Jones was set to harass opposing offenses.
The outlook for the Pels quickly soured as numerous key injuries derailed what could have been a promising season. New Orleans’ injury report could have made the post-Luka Mavs blush, and the team finished with the second-worst record in franchise history.
Can a healthier Pelicans team stay afloat in the ultra competitive Western Conference next season, or is another lottery-bound season on the horizon?
Let’s recap last season’s fantasy performances and look ahead to 2025-26.
Fantasy Standout and Revelation: Trey Murphy
In a tumultuous season filled with nearly three times as many wins as losses, Murphy was one of New Orleans’ few bright spots. Though he wasn’t a finalist for the award, he deserved strong consideration for Most Improved Player.
Murphy posted career highs across the board with 21.2 points, 5.1 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.1 steals, 0.7 blocks and three triples across 35 minutes. Murphy’s shooting splits weren’t bad, as he shot 45.4% from the floor, 88.7% from the charity stripe and 36.1% from beyond the arc.
Murphy was a steady contributor throughout the season, finishing 27th in per-game fantasy value. He had some electric scoring performances, going for at least 30 points seven times after posting eight such games across his first three seasons combined. Murphy notched two 40-point games, including a 40-point performance against the Celtics and a 41-point showing at Denver. In each game, he knocked down eight triples.
He appeared in 53 games after logging 57 games last season. Murphy was on the court more often than some of his teammates, but availability was still a concern. He missed the final 13 games of the regular season due to a torn labrum and partial rotator cuff tear, but there are no serious concerns about his availability to start the 2025-26 season.
Fantasy Disappointment: Dejounte Murray
Murray was solid on a per-game basis, finishing as an early sixth-rounder in fantasy hoops. Unfortunately for fantasy managers, he was on the court for only 31 games.
He nearly triple-doubled in his Pelicans debut, but Murray fractured his left hand in the season-opener against the Bulls and sat out for over a month. He returned on November 27, but his season ended on January 31 with a torn Achilles that threatens his availability for 2025-26 training camp.
Despite playing only 31 games, Murray still recorded eight double-doubles and a triple-double and showcased his ability to stuff the stat sheet on a regular basis.
Murray averaged 17.5 points, 6.5 rebounds, 7.4 assists and 1.7 triples. He recorded two steals per game, good for third-best in the league. Murray is a tremendous contributor, but availability is a concern for the first time in his career.
He averaged just over 72 games across his first six seasons, but he may struggle to return quickly from the torn Achilles he suffered in late January. His offseason recovery will be a situation that fantasy managers should closely monitor.
Fantasy Recaps/Look-Aheads
Zion Williamson:
Availability was the underlying theme throughout New Orleans’ lost season, and Williamson has been the poster child for missing games since arriving in the league.
Over the course of his five-year career, Williamson has appeared in 214 games and missed 196. He played in just six games between the season opener and January 7. Williamson logged just 30 games, marking the third time in five seasons that he played 30 or fewer.
Williamson has been no slouch when on the court, boasting career averages of 24.6 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.1 assists. He finished just outside the top 100 in per-game fantasy hoops this season, but his upside is much higher.
Fantasy managers who consider drafting him in 2025-26 should strongly consider his risk of missing games. His average draft position will surely reflect that risk following another season full of missed games.
Herb Jones:
The defensive specialist finished 110 in per-game fantasy value thanks in large part to his excellent work in the steals department. He averaged 10.3 points, 3.9 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.9 steals, 0.5 blocks and 1.1 triples while operating as a full-time starter.
Jones, like many of his teammates, missed significant time. He appeared in only 20 contests after logging at least 76 games in two of his first three seasons. He suffered a shoulder sprain in November that cost him time, and he underwent surgery on a torn rotator cuff in February that ended his season.
The defensive specialist is worth a look as a late-round selection in 2025-26 fantasy drafts with the knowledge that his primary value will come from a singular category.
C.J. McCollum:
McCollum missed some time early in the season due to an adductor strain, and he sat out the final 10 games due to a foot injury, but he was available more often than not. He logged 57 games and averaged 20.8 points, 3.7 rebounds and four assists. The assists were his lowest mark since the 2018-19 campaign, and the rebounds were his fewest since 2016-17.
His shooting splits were less than desirable, as McCollum knocked down just 44.4% of his field goal attempts and 71.7% of his tries from the charity stripe.
Lackluster efficiency led to a mixed bag on offense, but McCollum flashed his tremendous upside as a scorer with four 40-point games and a 50-point eruption against the Wizards that matched his career high set back in 2018.
McCollum will be 34 and playing in his 13th season in 2025-26, and fantasy managers shouldn’t expect strong improvements in the scoring and efficiency departments. He can improve as a facilitator, but McCollum’s fantasy ceiling is a late-round option who will post his share of duds and monster performances without a ton of consistency.
Yves Missi:
The Baylor product was taken 21st in the first round of the 2024 NBA Draft, and he was an immediate contributor for the Pelicans in his inaugural campaign.
Missi finished with 9.1 points, 8.2 boards and 1.3 swats across 26.8 minutes per game. Though New Orleans dealt with a multitude of key injuries across the roster, Missi was not often on the injury report. The rookie logged 73 appearances, including 67 starts.
He finished with three 20-point games, including a 24-point performance at Phoenix on February 28. He grabbed 15 rebounds against the Spurs on February 23, and he swatted five shots against the Clippers on December 30.
Missi should be pencilled in as the Pelicans’ starting center to open his second season, and he’s a threat to average a double-double with two blocks per game. If he can reach those numbers, he’ll be a top-100 guy in 2025-26.
Jordan Hawkins:
The second-year pro ended his sophomore campaign with career highs across the board. Hawkins averaged 10.8 points, 2.8 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 0.9 “stocks” and two triples. His numbers were better in nine starts, as he posted 17 points, 3.8 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 2.7 triples.
Hawkins showed promise and flashed upside on numerous occasions, but his fantasy ceiling will be capped if his efficiency doesn’t improve. Hawkins posted 37.2/81.6/33.1 splits, and improvements as a shooter could do wonders for his fantasy value. His most likely outlook is a three-point specialist who can heat up on offense, but there is also room for improvement as a rebounder and facilitator.
Jose Alvarado:
New Orleans’ injury woes opened up more playing time for Alvarado, and he made the most of his opportunities. He finished the season with 10.3 points, 2.4 boards, 4.6 dimes, 1.3 steals and two triples across 24.4 minutes per game. All of those numbers were career highs.
Across 23 starts, he posted 13.6 points, 2.8 boards, 5.4 dimes, 1.4 steals and 2.4 triples across 28.7 minutes. Alvo posted two double-doubles and handed out a career-high 11 assists against the Grizzlies on March 9.
After logging just three 20-point games through his first three seasons, he posted four of them this season alone. Alvarado has shown the ability to contribute meaningfully for fantasy managers when given extra minutes, and he could be given more opportunities next season if Dejounte Murray is sidelined or limited to start the 2025-26 campaign.
Kelly Olynyk:
Olynyk came over from Toronto in the Brandon Ingram trade, and he immediately saw a bump in playing time from 16 minutes per game to 25.4. The big man averaged 10.7 points, 5.9 boards, 3.6 dimes, 0.9 steals, 0.6 blocks and 0.7 triples. Those aren’t tremendous numbers, but Olynyk was a serviceable option in deeper leagues during “silly season.”
If he stays in New Orleans next season, he could see rotational minutes in the high teens to low 20s and potentially more if Zion Williamson continues to regularly miss time. Olynyk shouldn’t be on the
Restricted Free Agents: Antonio Reeves, Keion Brooks Jr., Jamal Cain
Unrestricted Free Agents: Bruce Brown Jr., Jeremiah Robinson-Earl
Club Option: Brandon Boston Jr., Elfrid Payton
Player Option: None
