Halo

The New Orleans Pelicans have a blossoming two-way force on their hands.

A couple of them, actually.

Point guard Jrue Holiday and versatile big man Anthony Davis have the tools, talent and tenacity needed to become the NBA's next dynamic duo. And they're a lot closer to realizing that potential than many might think.

Plagued by injury—an unfortunately apt description of New Orleans' 2013-14 season—Davis and Holiday barely had any time to hone their collective craft during their first year together. Davis suffered a broken hand that cost him seven games in December. Holiday suffered a season-ending stress fracture in his right tibia the following month.

The twosome played just 27 games together over the entire campaign. Yet, even with the small sample size, they hinted at a potentially productive partnership for years to come.

With Davis and Holiday on the floor, the Pelicans outscored their opponents by 4.1 points per 100 possessions. That net-efficiency mark would have been the NBA's eighth highest. Overall, the Pelicans compiled a minus-2.6 net rating, which ranked 21st in the league.

"I wish he and Anthony would have played more games for us together," Pelicans general manager Dell Demps said, via John Reid of The Times-Picayune. "I think they were just starting to jell and figure each other out."



Holiday, acquired last summer for a pair of first-round picks, needed some time to familiarize himself with his surroundings. He greeted Pelicans fans to the first game of the season on behalf of himself and the Philadelphia 76ers, the team he suited up for his first four years in the league.

Nerves aside, he didn't look particularly comfortable inside the lines either. His first eight games saw him tally 105 points on 111 field-goal attempts and dish out 55 assists against 32 turnovers.

Over his final 26 games of the season, though, he looked a lot more like the player New Orleans had sacrificed so many assets to get. He averaged 14.7 points on .472/.383/.761 shooting, 8.2 assists, 4.5 rebounds, 1.7 steals and only 2.8 turnovers in 33.9 minutes a night.

To put those numbers into perspective, only Chris Paul, Stephen Curry and John Wall averaged at least 14 points, eight dimes and four boards last season. None of those three topped 47.2 percent shooting, and only Paul coughed up fewer giveaways (2.34).

"We feel like we have a guy that can be a pillar for us for a long time," Pelicans coach Monty Williams said of Holiday, per Reid. "We are glad to have him. His ability to guard the ball is something I value big-time."



Long, strong and athletic, Holiday is a defense-first type of player, exactly what a team should want alongside a transcendent stopper like Davis.

But Holiday isn't a defensive specialist by any means. He's a plus performer on both ends of the floor.

Michael Pellissier of Bourbon Street Shots listed seven elements of Holiday's game as strengths: unselfishness, defense, spot-up shooting, pull-up jumper, rebounding, passing and ability to make an impact without scoring.

Could the basketball gods build a better point guard complement for Davis? Holiday can create offense for the big man, find—and more importantly, convert—his own shots when needed, serve as a safety valve when defenses double-team Davis and positively affect the game when the single-browed superstar takes over as a scorer.

Holiday isn't someone who would hinder Davis' ascent, rather he can help bring the big guy along. That's a terrifying thought considering how far Davis has already climbed on his own.

The 21-year-old—not a typo, Davis won't turn 22 until March—loudly announced his arrival among the NBA's elites last season. He forced his way into the 20-point, 10-rebound club while shooting 51.9 percent from the field and pacing the entire league with 2.8 blocks a night.

His 10.4 win shares were the 14th most in the NBA. His 26.5 player efficiency rating ranked ahead of everyone not named Kevin Durant, LeBron James or Kevin Love.

A dominant defender and skillful-but-still-developing scorer, Davis' future looks incredibly bright. His present might include standing alongside James and Durant atop the basketball world.

"Like James and Durant, Davis is a player without direct historical reference," wrote Beckley Mason of The New York Times. "He had drawn comparisons to Hakeem Olajuwon and other greats, but Davis is not the second coming of anyone."



The Davis that had everyone drooling last year isn't the one the Pelicans will be getting this time around. This version is bigger, stronger and more versatile on the offensive end.

"I'm definitely working on the corner three-pointer," Davis said in June, via NBA.com's Jim Eichenhofer. "(Also) more post moves, a consistent mid-range jump shot, ball-handling. Those are the things I'm working on right now get better. But at the same time, touching up on the things I'm pretty good at."

He's also growing as a leader, thanks to him playing a pivotal role for Team USA's gold medalists at the FIBA Basketball World Cup.

"He's understanding that he is a lead dog among a number of alpha dogs," said Williams, an assistant on USA Basketball's coaching staff, via Eichenhofer. "Mentally, he's taken it up a few notches."



With a healthy Holiday and a rising Davis, the Pelicans should have a destructive pick-and-roll pair on both sides of the ball.

Holiday has the shooting touch to fire from anywhere, the speed to clear the corner and the explosiveness to finish plays at the rim. Davis has go-go-gadget arms and pogo-stick springs, a deadly combination for a pick-and-roll screener. He was capable of popping out for a shot last season (43.1 percent from 10 to 16 feet) and should have even more range this time around.

Defensively, the 6'4" Holiday can use his 6'7" wingspan (per DraftExpress) to bother ball-handlers and his quickness to get around stone-wall screeners. Anyone who slips past New Orleans' initial line of defense has the daunting task of dealing with Davis, who is now joined on the interior by the rim-protecting Omer Asik.

If healthy, the Pelicans shouldn't struggle to score. In the 91 minutes Davis and Holiday shared with Tyreke Evans, Eric Gordon and Ryan Anderson last season, New Orleans averaged an absurd 123.5 points per 100 possessions. For reference, the Los Angeles Clippers led the league with a 109.4 offensive rating.

And it's hard to get worried about a defense led by Davis, Holiday and Asik, unless of course you're a coach who has to game plan against it.

Even amid a stacked Western Conference, the Pelicans—powered by the NBA's next premier pairing—are ready to make their move.

"The camaraderie that we have on this team, as well as the talent and so many young guys, I think we're going to do some big things, man," Holiday told SLAM Online's Abe Schwadron. "We all have a lot to prove this year, and playing with a chip on your shoulder is the best way to play."

External expectations for this team are high, but the internal beliefs are even stronger. Something special is brewing in the Big Easy, and it's about to be unleashed in the form of a vicious one-two punch.



Unless otherwise noted, statistics used courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com.

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billyt81

I'm so pumped about this team. Their roster is loaded and built very skillfully for once. And with a player like Davis, complimentary players are gonna look even better. Don't be surprised if the Pelicans shoot a lot of open 3's and Jimmer Ferdette, Eric Gordon, Luke Babbitt and Ryan Anderson make a ton of em because Defenses have collapsed around AD and Asik.

SmashMouth

They need to prove it.