Pelicans News: Holiday Pumped Up To Lead Young New Orleans Quintet

The New Orleans Pelicans are not among the top dogs for the coming NBA season. However, the Pels are oozing with young talent, enough reason for any hoops fan to check them out.

Starting the post-Anthony Davis era, tasked to lead the young cagers of New Orleans is Jrue Holiday. The 29-year-old guard is undoubtedly the team's best player and it appears the All-Star is ready for the challenge together with the new hungry faces on the Pelicans side.

"It’s been awesome. A lot of guys who are hungry, who feel like they need to prove themselves, and go out there and fight every night... I feel like we have a young, hungry team, but also a mixture of veterans," said Holiday in an interview with veteran writer Jim Eichenhofer.

Out to back Holiday will be the 2019 top pick, Zion Williamson. Aside from that, the Pelicans did hail in several promising names in the Davis trade with the Lakers. That includes Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, and Josh Hart. Other new faces include Derrick Favors and JJ Reddick, veterans who are equally hungry to prove that they are no pushovers.

The Pelicans will have to work doubly hard if they are to at least make the NBA playoffs. In the Eastern Conference, they have to contend with the defending champion Toronto Raptors and the dangerous Milwaukee Bucks five. The Philadelphia 76ers are also another team they have to be wary about. Compared to the Western Conference teams, they do have better chances of making it past the regular season. Their success depends on how Holiday and the rest of the crew perform under coach Alvin Gentry.

In a previous post, it was reported how Holiday was mentally preparing himself once he comes face-to-face with Davis. This early, he admits that it would be odd seeing his former big man teammate on the opposite end. Regardless, he promises to play his best and win as badly like his former teammate.

Last season, the Pelicans finished 9th with a 39-43 win-loss record in the East. It will be interesting if they can improve on that record. If Holiday and the recruits blend in well, the Pelicans may just have enough to advance to the next round.