Positive BPM Contributors (9): Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram, CJ McCollum, Herb Jones, Dyson Daniels, Jonas Valančiūnas, Larry Nance Jr. Trey Murphy III, Jose Alvarado
The New Orleans Pelicans' relentless push toward a top-four seed in the West is even more impressive when you realize their starting lineup has been outscored on the season. Remarkably, the Pels have a minus-0.3 net rating across 899 possessions with McCollum, Jones, Ingram, Williamson and Valančiūnas on the floor.
That might be the best data point in the case for New Orleans' depth, followed closely by the one that shows lineups including both Williamson and Ingram only post a plus-3.4 net rating. Contrast that with, say, Nikola Jokić and Jamal Murray in Denver (plus-14.9) or Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams in OKC (plus-10.8), and it's clear the Pelicans' first unit and top-line stars aren't as responsible for the team's success as those of other contending teams.
Let's skip over the discussion of fit issues that arise when noting the Pels tend to look their best when only one of Williamson or Ingram is on the floor and instead praise the best top-to-bottom collections of players in the game.
Herb Jones is a flat-out defensive superstar, but Daniels also showed signs of reaching that status before he suffered a meniscus injury. He logged more than 1,100 minutes of disruptive defense while also making plays as a facilitator prior to going down. Nance has often been head coach Willie Green's choice to close games at center.
New Orleans' total of nine positive BPM contributors recently added Trey Murphy III and Jose Alvarado, both of whom qualified for the minutes-per-game leaderboard last week. However, Naji Marshall still isn't in the mix here due to his minus-0.4 BPM. He's been undeniably vital to the team's success, a physical irritant who can change games with his attitude alone.
Believe it or not, the Pelicans are even deeper than it seems.
Grant Hughes covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter (@gt_hughes), and subscribe to the Hardwood Knocks podcast, where he appears with Bleacher Report's Dan Favale.
