Dante Cunningham and the Possibly Deep Pelicans
By Mike Delayo
For the past couple of seasons, the roster of the New Orleans Pelicans has been much maligned for two reasons:
1.) They have lacked depth.
2.) They did not have a competent small forward.
Although they may not have found the ideal long term fix quite yet, progress is definitely being made. On December 4th, the Pelicans signed free agent forward Dante Cunningham. Throughout his NBA career, Cunningham has built his reputation as a high-energy, team player with some nice defensive chops and a solid mid-range jump shot (AKA Monty Williams’ soul mate). Nine games into his tenure, he has easily surpassed the expectations of everyone from the front office to the fan base.
(2) while forward
Kostas Papanikolaou(16) watches in the first quarter at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Thomas B. Shea-USA TODAY Sports” width=”300″ height=”375″ /> Dec 18, 2014; Houston, TX, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Dante Cunningham (44) shoots against Houston Rockets guard Patrick Beverley (2) while forward Kostas Papanikolaou (16) watches in the first quarter at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Thomas B. Shea-USA TODAY Sports
The evolution of analytics the past few years have taught me to cringe at the idea of a player not named Dirk launching a long two. That is, until I studied Cunningham. Through his first nine games he has shown remarkable efficiency in knocking down catch and shoot opportunities, posting a 58.1% success rate. Although he does not have three point range (his three pointer last night was his second career make and first since 2011), his ability to find his spots from mid-range has still managed to space the floor quite effectively.
Since coming into the league Cunningham had split time between forward positions, but spent most of his time at the four. Monty has been trying to get more minutes out of him from the three so far this season, and it seems to be paying off.
Cunningham fits very nicely next to Ryan Anderson in the lineup. What the team would usually lose in rebounding and defensive efficiency when Anderson hits the floor is now limited thanks to what Dante brings to the table. His defensive versatility has also been key, as he has been quick enough to stay with most threes, but can still give some bulkier fours trouble.
With Dante on board, the Pelicans suddenly have a much more balanced roster. Jrue Holiday, Tyreke Evans and Austin Rivers have been succeeding as co-primary ball handlers when manning the backcourt. Anthony Davis, Omer Asik and Anderson have become one of the most dynamic trios of big men in the league. If Jeff Withey can maintain his improvement, he can serve as a legitimate back up to Asik. Luke Babbitt is manning the three point line with surprising efficiency thus far, and now he has Cunningham’s assortment of skills to cover everything else.
There will be games where Tyreke will not be finding the bottom of the basket, Anderson can’t buy a shot from deep and Holiday is being too unselfish. However, the Pelicans are now looking at a team with the capability to rise to the occasion when others cannot.
Dec 16, 2014; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Ryan Anderson (33) reacts after scoring on a three point basket against the Utah Jazz during the fourth quarter of a game at the Smoothie King Center. The Pelicans defeated the Jazz 119-111. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
In last week’s matchup against the surging Cavaliers, Davis was forced to exit after only seven minutes of playing time. Evans and Anderson promptly torched Cleveland for 30 points apiece, proving too much for LeBron James and company to handle.
Two nights later the Pelicans were forced to march into battle with the Golden State Warriors, easily the best team in the league at the quarter mark of the season, without Anthony Davis. Just ten days prior, New Orleans was embarrassed by the Warriors on national television, and that was WITH Davis. But once again, the Pels stayed strong. Two more 30 point performances, this time from Evans and Holiday, plus an efficient night from Cunningham (6-7 from the field for 13 points) were enough to push the Warriors into overtime. Even without their best player, the Pelicans proved that they had enough firepower to trade shots with the best of the NBA.
Dec 18, 2014; Houston, TX, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Luke Babbitt (8) helps forward Anthony Davis (23) off of the floor against the Houston Rockets in the first quarter at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Thomas B. Shea-USA TODAY Sports
The Utah Jazz gave the Pelicans a run for their money, but New Orleans still kept their foot in the ground. Anthony Davis continued to do Anthony Davis things, while Anderson, Evans and even Austin Rivers helped to dictate the rest of the offense. Cunningham was key to shutting down Gordon Hayward and the Jazz in the fourth quarter as well.
All of the improvements being shown over these past few games culminated into one product in last night’s upset over the Houston Rockets, in which the Pelicans were without Tyreke Evans. Offensively, the forward trio of Davis, Anderson and Cunningham carried to load until Holiday and Rivers got into a rhythm. Luke Babbitt managed to hit another trio of triples. The guards and Cunningham were key to locking down the perimeter, holding the hot-handed Rockets to 6-25 from deep. Despite John Salmons eating up possessions with wide open misses, New Orleans yet again got enough from the rest of the team to pull through.
Dante Cunningham’s arrival has been a key factor in bolstering the Pelicans’ depth. The sample size is small, but the data is there. Suddenly, the much maligned second unit of New Orleans is competent enough to help the starters dream of the playoffs.
And with Anthony Davis leading a talented group of starters, that just might be enough.