With the Pelicans season officially over, we begin our look back at each individual player’s season and recap what we learned and where they stand with the Pelicans moving forward.
Overview
After missing his rookie season due to an injury, Frank Jackson has continually developed in his next two seasons in New Orleans. After a strong de facto rookie season, Jackson’s role was reduced in his second season on the court.
Jackson’s PER, true shooting percentage and effective field goal percentage all marginally dropped while his raw averages dipped in his fewer minutes this season. However, Jackson also played a big role in the bubble and was one of the few bright spots of the team’s final eight games.
What was learned?
The biggest thing learned of Jackson this season came in the bubble in that he could be counted on in big games. Jackson played in all eight games and had an 8.9 net rating, most of anyone who played over four games. Even factoring out the final two games, which were effectively pointless games after the Pelicans were eliminated from the playoffs, Jackson’s 21.2 net rating was best of every player to feature in the six games.
But just as there can’t be overarching takeaways from Lonzo Ball’s poor performance in the bubble, there can’t be positive ones from Jackson’s strong performance.
Taking away his performance in the bubble, Jackson had a net rating of -5.9 this season. He struggled to find his role with the team as much as he struggled to find consistency throughout the season. After a strong start in October, Jackson’s net rating from the start of November through the lockdown in March was -9.1, worst among regular rotation players.
Does his strong finish in the Pelicans’ biggest games of the year make up for a season of struggles?
What does the future hold?
The Pelicans can extend a qualifying offer to Jackson this summer for just over $2 million. It’ll be an interesting decision for New Orleans. While it doesn’t hurt to extend him the qualifying offer, whether the team brings him back will say a lot about how they view him moving forward.
If he does stick around, Jackson will need to improve as a shooter. This season, he hit just 32.6% of his three-pointers, an improvement from his rookie season.
