There are certain traits NBA coaches will tell you cannot be manufactured in a gym or taught on a whiteboard. When the new-look New Orleans Pelicans drafted Jeremiah Fears, the scouting reports spoke of speed, burst, and fearless downhill attacking. Just a few months into his NBA career, however, the internal comparisons have accelerated into rarefied air. Interim head coach James Borrego even mentioned Tony Parker as one Hall of Fame blueprint.
It’s a lofty parallel, but Borrego, who spent years as an assistant coach with the San Antonio Spurs during Parker’s prime, does not make it lightly.
“(Fears) has something you can't teach, which is speed and the ability to get downhill. That's elite right now. You could put him in a category with the top 10 guards that can do this right now,” Borrego boasted. “He does not need a pick and roll and can get at-will to the paint when he wants.”
Yet, as Borrego quickly notes, getting to the rim is only half the battle.
“Then it's about decision-making. I get down there, now what?” Borrego noted. “At times, for young guys throughout their career, they've been able to go finish in that area against maybe a smaller, less athletic player. In the NBA, that's a different animal.”
This is where the rookie's education begins, and where Borrego’s experience with Tony Parker becomes a vital teaching tool.
“Just having that discernment, poise, and decision-making to make the right play at the rim when he gets down there. That is where we are growing with him,” explained Borrego. “(Fears) is going to make some great plays. Hopefully, we start to eliminate some of those that can go the other direction. That comes with time, and he is very aware of it. He is an unselfish player. He makes our pace, starts our pace. Now it's about decision-making (at the rim) with the talent base around him. You've got to manage. There is a responsibility that comes with that as a point guard.”
This precise crossroads where elite physical gift meets high-IQ necessity is invaluable for Fears.
It’s also where the comparison emerges from mere flattery into a tangible developmental path.
“I've been fortunate to be around some point guards who have had that talent. Tony Parker was a natural scorer when we got him,” Borrego shared. “Speed, pace, and I share this with Jeremiah a lot. Tony was a scorer at his core. Great pace and high-level paint player.”
The parallel is striking. Parker, the 28th pick in 2001, entered the league as a jet-fast water bug whose primary instinct was to score. His evolution into a championship orchestrator was a painful, formative process under Gregg Popovich, learning to balance his own gifts with the responsibilities of managing legends.
“(Parker) had to learn how to manage (Tim Duncan), (Manu Ginobili), (Finley). That was part of his game,” Borrego remembered. “It took a minute for (Hall of Famer Gregg Popovich) to get that across to him, especially when that's your nature. More than anything, Jeremiah is willing to learn. He is a sponge. He is curious. If you have that type of character mentality, you'll get there. I think that is where we are headed.”
The Pelicans are not just trying to develop a good point guard. They are intentionally guiding a uniquely gifted downhill force through a transformation they've seen succeed at the highest level. For now, Jeremiah Fears is soaking it all in, one downhill drive at a time, proving that Tony Parker's Hall of Fame blueprint might just be within reach.
