The New Orleans Pelicans were one of the more well-represented teams in ESPN’s top 100 NBA players preseason list, released over the course of multiple days beginning on Tuesday and carrying through Wednesday. While the entirety of the list has not yet been revealed with players ranked 50-11 released on Wednesday, the entirety of the Pelicans representation has been revealed.
Zion Williamson came in as the highest-ranked player on the team at 19th, a ranking that created quite a stir on social media in response. Brandon Ingram was the only other player on the team to be featured in the top 50 as he came in ranked 28th, one season removed from an All-Star appearance and the Most Improved Player award. Fittingly, Ingram jumped 28 spots from his rating last year after his breakout season.
Lonzo Ball also received an unexpectedly-high ranking, coming in at 54th overall. Like Ingram, Ball had a breakout season that saw him jump from 68th the season prior. Like Williamson, though, Ball’s rating received plenty of attention and criticism, particularly because of who he was ranked above.
The team’s two biggest acquisitions over the summer were very closely ranked at the back end of the top 100. Eric Bledsoe was ranked 67th heading into the season while Steven Adams was three spots higher at 70. Bledsoe’s rating remained exactly the same as the prior season while Adams’ rating improved by five spots.
