New Orleans Pelicans head coach Willie Green said “If it ain't broke, I ain't fixing it” when asked about the current starting five after a Thanksgiving week home win over the Sacramento Kings. Well, Green will soon be dealing with “some of those good problems” this holiday season. CJ McCollum is targeting a return to the rotation as soon as this week, per Shams Charania of The Athletic.
Considering the Pelicans' recent success, reallocating minutes is a delicate matter to unwrap.
Pelicans can't max CJ McCollum's minutes immediately
CJ McCollum, who has been out for almost a month, reportedly wants to return in a home game against either the Philadelphia 76ers (11/29) or the San Antonio Spurs (12/1). However, Dyson Daniels, Herb Jones, Brandon Ingram, Zion Williamson, and Jonas Valanciunas are 5-0 as a starting group going into Monday's game in Utah. Furthermore, Daniels and Jones have made things easy but downright tormenting against opposing backcourts.
With that said, the Pelicans can afford to keep the McCollum's miles low and just ease him back into action.
Even McCollum commented on the near-elite defense Daniels has been playing. Jones is on an NBA All-Defensive Team trajectory, and Daniels is not far behind. Green and McCollum have an obligation to the Pelicans to ride the hot hands and stack early-season home wins. It's just one game for McCollum as a reserve with 75 percent of the schedule remaining. This would not be a bruise to an ego-type move for Green to make.
Keeping Jones and Daniels together to corral Tyrese Maxey is the smart play against the 76ers on Wednesday. The Lehigh alum can knock off some rust running the second unit. Green's game plan can bake in plenty of overlapping McCollum minutes with Williamson and Ingram to start building on-court chemistry. The Pelicans can see how things feel without too big of a shakeup before Victor Wembenyama's Spurs visit the Smoothie King Center. That weekend matchup will have the extra energy of being the hottest ticket in town.
McCollum makes Green's job easier when Zion is out
The Pelicans have won five of their last seven games and are again above .500 (9-8). McCollum and Murphy III are due back sooner rather than later. Coach Willie Green might get more than half a season with Williamson, Ingram, and McCollum all available. Still, this is an organization very familiar with working off of contingency plans. McCollum has proven to be a great leader in those circumstances.
McCollum's return to the Pelicans will help mitigate any loss if Williamson continues to miss games on a set schedule. He was averaging 21.7 points, 5.7 assists, and 4.8 rebounds per game before being sidelined with a lung issue. McCollum adapts well to flexible roles and is coachable despite being on the wrong side of 30. The veteran sharpshooter was hitting on 45 percent of his field goals and had embraced the coaching staff's directive to shoot more 3-pointers.
With Williamson having scheduled rest nights and Trey Murphy III still yet to return, CJ McCollum will have plenty of opportunities to get up shots. McCollum's 8.3 attempts from beyond the arc per game at a 38 percent clip was helping keep the floor spaced around Williamson and Brandon Ingram. Both the 3-point volume and assists per game numbers are near career highs. Unwrap those stats with the latest news, and, well, it's not the worst present Willie Green and the Pelicans have gotten over the years. Now they just have to capitalize on the Big 3 all being healthy at the same time.
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