New Orleans can’t keep pretending this is fixable.
Willie Green has become a liability. Four seasons into his run as head coach of the New Orleans Pelicans, the team still lacks identity, direction, and consistency. Green’s rotations don’t make sense, his lineups look like they’re pulled from a hat, and the development of young talent is stalling under his watch. The problem isn’t the players—it’s the coaching.
The front office has assembled a roster with the right blend of proven talent and upside. The core includes star forward Zion Williamson, elite shooter Trey Murphy III, defensive anchor Herb Jones, and shot-creating guard Jordan Poole. Two lottery picks—rookie guard Jeremiah Fears and big man Derik Queen—add explosive potential to the backcourt and frontcourt, respectively. Second-year center Yves Missi brings vertical spacing, rim protection, and athleticism. This team should be fun, fast, and dangerous. Instead, it’s flat, slow, and underachieving.
Green’s mismanagement starts with his refusal to commit to the team’s youth movement. Queen, a polished offensive big with vision and touch, is stuck behind low-ceiling veterans. Fears, one of the most electric scoring guards in his class, is being handled with kid gloves instead of being allowed to grow through reps. Missi, who should be playing as a vertical lob threat or a switchable five, has essentially been phased out of the rotation. He hasn’t seen real minutes in the last two games, and when he does play, he’s often jammed into awkward two-big lineups with other non-shooters that completely destroy spacing. That kind of usage doesn’t help him develop, and it doesn’t help the team win.
These aren’t isolated mistakes—they’re patterns. Green leans on outdated, low-pace, heavy lineups that have no business existing in today’s NBA. There’s minimal structure to the offensive sets, and when things get tight, the plan seems to revolve around hero ball or broken plays. For a team loaded with weapons, the Pelicans look offensively limited far too often.
The results speak for themselves. After 11 games, the Pelicans sit at 2–9—dead last in the Western Conference. They opened the season winless in their first six games out West, ranking near the bottom of the league in both offensive and defensive efficiency. They fall behind early, fight back late, and never look fully locked in. The starting lineup changes game to game, and so do the substitution patterns. There’s no continuity, and it shows.
Internally, frustration is mounting. Reports suggest players are unhappy with how minutes and roles are being handled. On the court, the signs are obvious—disengaged defense, poor transition effort, and lifeless stretches where the team looks like it’s sleepwalking. That’s not just on the players. That’s on a coach who’s clearly lost control of the pulse.
Meanwhile, the front office has made it clear it’s done waiting. The Pelicans have moved draft assets, reshuffled basketball operations, and made offseason additions with the intent to win now. But Green is still coaching like he’s in a rebuild—playing it safe with veterans, slowing down the pace, and marginalizing the players who could actually raise the team’s ceiling.
Yes, Zion’s injury history matters. He’s missed the last five games with a hamstring strain, and availability has always been part of the conversation. Yes, the Western Conference is brutal. But none of that justifies the lack of clarity, creativity, or development. The coaching has not evolved, the strategy hasn’t changed, and the team looks exactly like it did last season—unfocused and underprepared.
This can’t continue. The Pelicans are wasting a critical window by sticking with a coach who has already shown he can’t elevate this group. Young talent is being sidelined, the system is broken, and the locker room isn’t buying in.
Willie Green had his shot. He had time. He had talent. But he hasn’t delivered. If New Orleans is serious about building something real, they need a new voice on the sideline—someone who can maximize the roster, modernize the approach, and stop letting this much talent go to waste.
It’s time to make the move.
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