The NBA’s all-time starting five: New Orleans Pelicans

You’re in your second semester of AP Basketball History, you love really good teams, and you love lists. With precious little drama left in the NBA’s 2015 offseason, why don’t we hit the barroom and/or barbershop, pour ourselves a frosty mug of Barbicide, and get to arguin’ over each franchise’s most formidable starting five-man lineup.

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Because we don’t like making tough decisions, the lineups will reflect the All-NBA line of thinking. There will be no differentiation between separate forward and guard positions, and the squads will be chosen after careful consideration of individual merits only – we don’t really care if your team’s top shooting guard and point guard don’t get along.

These rankings will roll out based on when each franchise began its NBA life. We continue with the New Orleans Pelicans, who will soon have a league MVP on their hands.

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As we explained away in our list for Charlotte, we’re treating the Pelicans and current Charlotte Hornets in the same fashion that the NBA technically regards them: Charlotte’s history belongs to Charlotte, even the Bobcat history (sorry about that, Charlotte), and all of New Orleans’ NBA history, save for the New Orleans Jazz’s history, belongs to the current New Orleans Pelicans.

This means that, effectively, the NBA’s most recent expansion team, the former New Orleans Hornets, was born in 2002.

And that this effectively ends this series. Thank you for reading.

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C: Anthony Davis. The big man’s next game with the Pelicans will only be his 200th with the franchise, but that doesn’t preclude us from recognizing Davis’ three outstanding seasons in New Orleans. Davis led the NBA in blocks in 2014-15 and was an MVP candidate for the bulk of the season despite working on a team that would only win 45 games in the loaded Western Conference. He’s averaged 19.7 points, 9.5 rebounds, 2.5 blocks and 1.3 steals per game in just 33 minutes a contest in his NBA career, and is only 22.

F: David West. The burly forward started just nine games in his first two seasons with the team, working behind the respected P.J. Brown, but his career took off during a Brown-less and injury-free third season. A two-time All-Star with New Orleans, West averaged 16.4 points and 7.3 rebounds in only 32 minutes a night with the team, providing an expert screen-setting and floor-stretching presence.

F: P.J. Brown. Rare is the role player that makes these sorts of lists, but the ageless Brown deserves this spot for his work in New Orleans. A rangy defensive-minded big that worked alongside center Jamaal Magliore, Brown averaged 10.3 points and 8.5 boards in his time with New Orleans while playing mindful help D throughout his tenure.

G: Baron Davis. The athletic scoring guard played just 135 games with New Orleans, spread out over two and a half injury and conditioning-plagued seasons, but he made one All-Star team and was the face of the franchise upon its move to Louisiana. Davis averaged over 20 points with seven assists and 2.1 steals with the team prior to forcing a trade that would help the franchise, um, enhance its lottery odds as it looked to secure the next player on our list.

G: Chris Paul. Right up there with Steve Nash as the best point guard of the mid-to-late aughts, CP3 was an immediate sensation in New Orleans. He made four All-Star teams, won the Rookie of the Year in 2006, twice led the NBA in assists and three times in steals. Paul averaged 18.7 points and 9.9 assists (the same marks he’s averaged as a Clipper) in New Orleans, with 2.4 steals and 4.6 rebounds a contest.

New Orleans’ short NBA history makes for some tough choices, especially when you note P.J. Brown’s modest box score stats, Anthony Davis’ three years (and 53 missed games due to injury) and Baron Davis’ 135-game tenure. Jamal Mashburn was an All-Star in his first year with New Orleans, but he played just 19 career games after that inaugural season. Meanwhile, Jamaal Magliore was also an All-Star in 2004 for the franchise, but he played even fewer games than Anthony Davis has with the team.

Fans considered Peja Stojakovic to be overpaid or aging or both when he worked in New Orleans, but he did average over 14 points per game in 219 games with the team, offering a needed outside presence (40 percent three-point shooting) for a club that was finding its postseason footing. Around the same time Tyson Chandler averaged a double-double in 197 career games with the club, but beyond that the all-time list is a little thin.

That’s our five. Who are you going with?

Previous entries: Golden State. Boston. New York. Detroit. Sacramento. Los Angeles Lakers. Atlanta. Philadelphia. Washington. Chicago. Houston. Seattle/Oklahoma City. Phoenix. Milwaukee. Los Angeles Clippers. Cleveland. Portland. Utah. Brooklyn. Indiana. San Antonio. Denver. Dallas. Charlotte. Miami. Minnesota. Orlando. Toronto. Memphis. New Orleans.