When Zion Williamson's overly optimistic New Orleans Pelicans opened the season, Karlo Matkovic was not penciled in as a key rotational piece. However, through sheer effort, physicality, and an infectious team-first mentality, the young big man has forced James Borrego into a welcome dilemma.
Matkovic’s steady rise from a fringe option to a trusted contributor has complicated the lineup choices, particularly with multiple productive big men competing for minutes.
Matkovic is flirting with 10-point and 10-rebound nights far more frequently, while shooting 46% from 3-point range (1.2 attempts per game). He has swatted at least two blocks in three of the last eight games, as of February 23. The 24-year-old Croatian’s recent performances have been impossible to ignore.
“He is making it tough on me,” Borrego told ClutchPoints. “It's tough deciding who we are going to play, who we are not going to play. We've got a number of guys playing well in the front court with (Derik Queen, Yves Missi) and Karlo. (Kevon Looney) is a pro and he's been there; then there is (Zion Williamson) as well. Still, Karlo keeps putting pressure on me to continue to play him through his effort, his physicality, his size, and his ability to be a two-way player. Offensively, (Matkovic) plays with great pace, gets up the floor, and can make a three. He can make a DHO and second side stuff for us.”
What separates Matkovic from a typical young player fighting for minutes, though, goes beyond the box score. Borrego has been particularly struck by what the big man brings in the less measurable areas of the game.
“It's all the intangibles, too. (Matkovic) does not care if he scores or if he gets the credit. He is what you want to be about as a team,” Borrego noted. “Karlo is a team-first guy.”
Matkovic’s emergence has come largely through consistent energy and reliability rather than headline-grabbing stat lines. That selfless character, Borrego suggests, did not happen by accident.
“Somewhere back home, someone taught him well; he was raised well. He was coached well, and he has a spirit about selflessness and team that I just love,” confessed Borrego. “That oozes out of his play, and he continues to play with great confidence.”
Matkovic wasn’t projected to be a regular part of the rotation when the season began. Yet every time he steps on the floor, he earns another opportunity…and then another.
The Pelicans are crazy about Karlo Matkovic
Confidence, in fact, has been one of the most visible developments in Matkovic's game as the workload has increased. The more he plays, the more natural he looks in an NBA setting.
“As you said, (Matkovic) looks more and more comfortable with the more minutes he gets,” Borrego admitted. “He has earned it. This is not been given to him. He was not pegged to be a rotational guy to start this season, but we've put him out there. I trust him and believe in him. He knows that, and I don't see him dropping off.”
Matkovic, the 52nd overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, has brought an intriguing blend of modern big man skills to the floor. At 6-foot-10 with legitimate shooting range, he adds a quiet, selfless reliability that coaches crave. At least one team will value those attributes in free agency this summer, if the Pelicans do not pick up a $2.2 million club option.
Borrego doesn’t hide how much he values that last part. In a league where egos can derail locker rooms, Matkovic’s willingness to do the dirty work without needing the spotlight has quickly made him a favorite of both the coaching staff and his teammates. The coach’s “tough” decision isn’t likely to get any easier.
As long as Matkovic keeps bringing the same effort, physicality, and team-first mentality every night, the rebuilding Pelicans will have to keep finding ways to get him on the floor because right now, leaving him out feels like the wrong choice both in the short and long term. In a league always searching for shooting, size, and selflessness, Karlo Matkovic is proving to be a rare combination of all three. And he's making James Borrego's job delightfully difficult in the process.
