The final three games before the All-Star break for all 30 NBA teams were played on Thursday evening. While LeBron recorded the oldest triple-double ever, the Giannis-less Milwaukee Bucks blew out the Oklahoma City Thunder and Jrue Holiday had a season-high 31 against the Jazz, my biggest takeaway from the Pelicans perspective comes from Ousmane Dieng’s performance for Milwaukee against his former team.
For those who need a reminder, the 11th pick in the 2022 NBA Draft was traded from the Thunder to the Hornets, then from the Hornets to the Bulls, and finally from the Bulls to the Bucks. Dieng has had a very impressive start with the Bucks and is really reminding people why he was seen as one of the biggest upside moves in the 2022 draft class.
For the Pelicans, his start in Milwaukee is also a reminder of another missed opportunity at the trade deadline to acquire a player that fits the player New Orleans desperately needs.
A new deadline for regrets is already starting to take shape
In his second game for the Bucks (his first with real minutes after logging 5 in his debut), Dieng scored 17 points and grabbed three rebounds, with 5 of his 6 made shots coming from beyond the arc, in just 23 minutes. He then followed that up with an even crazier stat line of 19 points, 11 rebounds, six assists and three more threes.
This type of elite shooting, combined with his 6-foot-4 frame and age of 22, makes him the type of player the Pelicans should have focused on acquiring at the deadline.
New Orleans has struggled with floor space all season, causing the fourth fewest three-pointers per game this season. Moreover, they are undersized in the front field with a pair of 1.80 meters. Zion Williamson and 6-foot-2 rookie Derik Queen.
Landing Dieng would have solved those issues, and considering he was traded by three different teams at the deadline, that kind of move suggests the asking price likely wasn’t high.
Taking that into account, he was drafted by Sam Presti, who has built a potential dynasty in the Thunder primarily through the draft. It’s not crazy to assume he had a good chance of breaking out in his next situation.
Certainly, it may be too early to assume Dieng is on his way to fully breaking out as a full-time rotation player in the NBA. But with the way he performed in his two games where he really burned out with the Bucks, he appears to be on his way there. And for a Pelicans team that needs space, size and players who are on the same timeline as Jeremiah Fears and Derik Queen, Dieng could have been a perfect buy-low player.
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