Herb Jones Running Center?!
The New Orleans Pelicans are experimenting this season.
I believe that a center should be center size.
For instance, Jonas Valančiūnas is a perfect example of an ideal center size-wise.
So when I came across rumours that the New Orleans Pelicans were going to run Herb Jones, a 6-7, 206-pound wing, at the center position, I was in disbelief.
“What? No, this can’t be true!” I thought to myself.
But then I watched the video of Shams Charania talking about it on The Pat McAfee Show and the news is most likely valid.
So, here’s what I think the Pelicans are going to do in this small-ball experiment.
Jones is definitely undersized for a center. He’s even undersized for a power forward.
But he’s long (7-foot wingspan), a fantastic defender (averaged 1.4 steals and 0.8 blocks) and a pest in the passing lanes.
And this is the attribute that will help him the most when he’s defending bigger players.
Instead of guarding opposing centers head-on, I think head coach Willie Green is going to have Jones do all he can to prevent the center from getting the ball. His main job will be to interrupt passing lanes, not protect the rim.
This is something Jones did a lot of last season and one of the traits that got him on the All-Defensive First Team.
However, Jones isn’t going to be able to intercept every pass. Additionally, there will be centers (like Nikola Jokic or Victor Wembanyama) who will bring the ball up and force Jones to defend them.
In some of these cases, there’s nothing he could do. All he could do is try his best.
But in other cases, he’s long enough and handsy enough to knock the ball out of his opponent’s hands or to force his opponent into taking a difficult, contested shot.
And I’m sure there will be help defence protocols set in place where a teammate will come over and assist him if he’s getting annihilated in the post.
I also think opposing teams will be more hesitant to run the pick-and-roll because if Jones hedges up and switches onto the ball handler, he’s going to make it much more difficult for them to make a play because of his aggressive, active perimeter defence.
But these are just my thoughts. How do you feel about this small-ball lineup? Do you think Jones playing center is a good idea? Do you think the Pelicans’ focus on perimeter defence will work?
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