Halo

Monty Williams has ridden the see-saw of job security in 2014, watching his projected fortunes change with each passing game. A late surge from his injury-plagued New Orleans Pelicans outfit has inspired confidence in his ability to manage a team, but is he a worthy leader for the franchise now and in the future?

Between March 21 and March 28, the Pelicans ripped off five straight victories, including wins over the Los Angeles Clippers, Brooklyn Nets and Miami Heat. In the eyes of Jeff Duncan of The Times-Picayune, their play down the stretch is a hearty endorsement of Williams' coaching.

Even though they're out of the playoff hunt, the Pels clearly haven't quit on Williams or tuned him out. They continue to play hard, something few teams in their position can say at this stage of the season.

You could argue it shouldn't have taken this long for Williams to see that Evans was a better option than the offensively-challenged Al-Farouq Aminu at small forward. But you have to credit Williams for making the adjustment and somehow squeezing victories out of a lineup that's missing starting point guard Jrue Holiday, sharpshooter Ryan Anderson and big man Jason Smith.

Within that praise lies the crux of the argument: should Williams be praised for making something out of nothing, or is his reluctance to adjust until the season was lost a root cause of disappointment?

For some, managing to squeak out some wins with half of a legitimate roster is enough.

A coach is only as good as his players, and Williams hasn't had much to work with. The team's hopeful crunch-time lineup —Jrue Holiday, Eric Gordon, Tyreke Evans, Ryan Anderson and Anthony Davis— managed to play just 91 minutes together this season, according to 82games.com. Each member of that unit has missed time this season, including significant chunks lost for Davis, Anderson and Holiday.

Anderson's loss was especially problematic, because he's one of the most uniquely talented players in the league, a three-point marksman with few rivals league-wide, let alone at the power forward spot.





Read more New Orleans Pelicans news on BleacherReport.com



More...