Pelicans make clear choice to part ways with Lonzo Ball

Despite being a low key, calm, easy going person, Lonzo Ball was the most polarizing figure on the New Orleans Pelicans squad.

Never in the history of the nearly two decade-old franchise (as a New Orleans entity) has a player stirred up so many opinions and emotions, ranging from wildly ecstatic viewpoints to crushingly critical comments.

Ball is just 23. He turns 24 in October.

The growth process which takes place in most NBA players figures to continue.

Despite being 23, Ball is now a veteran player, with four years of experience under his belt.

Ball is coming off his best season, a season in which he averaged 14.6 points per game.

He shot a career best 41.6 percent from the field and a career best 37.8 percent from 3-point range. Add to that a vastly improved free throw percentage of 78.1 percent, up from 56.6 percent the previous season, and you see an ascending player.

Ball must be given an enormous amount of credit for working hard to improve his poor, unorthodox form and shot from distance.

It took hard work and it took courage that what he had been utilizing for the balance of his prep, college and pro career was fatally flawed.

The result was perhaps the most dependable option from 3-point range on the team this past season.

Who would have possibly thought it?

Then again, when your best is 41.6 percent from the field, there is clear room for improvement.

Then again, Ball saw his assists drop to 5.7 per game from 7.1 per game in the 2019-20 season.

Then again, Ball’s rebound average fell from 6.1 per game in 2019-20 to 4.8 per game this past season.

Interestingly, despite the fact that Ball is tall, sees the floor and has dribble penetrating ability, he seldom penetrates the lane and finishes at the rim.

Then, the questions became simple for David Griffin and now Willie Green.

Was Ball a good fit long-term with Zion Williamson?

Was Ball a player to lead a team as a point guard or a nominal shooting guard?

Was Ball at the peak performance level or was there more to come?

Was Ball worth four years and $85 million, an average of $21.25 million annually?

Was Ball open to staying in New Orleans long-term or was he champing at the bit to exit stage left?

If you accept Williamson’s word at face value and why wouldn’t anyone do so, Zion was comfortable with Ball and liked him as a teammate.

Former coach Alvin Gentry clearly was enamored of Ball.

If you accept Stan Van Gundy’s assessment, that he really liked Ball but that Ball was more of a shooting guard, was that what you wanted to invest in?

If you accept the improvement Ball displayed this past season, did you believe that there was more to come?

If you felt that Ball was an elite level point guard or shooting guard, would you have let him get away or would you have paid him handsomely as your third star behind Williamson and Brandon Ingram?

If you listen to Ball’s father and if you see the track record of Klutch Sports and Rich Paul, you had to at least have the notion that Ball would have walked at the end of his contract in New Orleans if you chose to retain him.

For what it is worth, this will be the third team for Ball entering his fifth year in the league, not typically a fact equating to a top level player in the league.

Then, there is the haul New Orleans received in return.

Thomas Satoransky, Garrett Temple and a second-round draft pick do not immediately inspire great confidence or excitement.

Like Ball, Satoransky can play both guard spots.

Like Ball, Satoransky is long (6-foot-seven).

Satoransky is an average shooter from 3-point range, 36.6 percent over his five-year career in the NBA.

Satoransky averages 4.2 assists per game but only rebounds at a 2.4 per game level.

As is the case with Ball, Satoransky will join his third team as he enters the sixth year of his career.

Satoransky certainly fits the role of a solid bench contributor, having played in 58 games last season with Chicago while starting just 18. He can and will accept that role.

Unlike Ball, Satoransky is not a young player, set to turn 30 in October. And he may not even be in the Pelicans’ plans either as they continue to reshape the roster this offseason. Stay tuned.

Former LSU star and Baton Rouge native Garrett Temple has fashioned a solid, long NBA career, largely thanks to his versatility as a top on-the-ball defender, a sorely needed piece to the puzzle in New Orleans.

Temple is long in the tooth and likely on his last contract in the league at the age of 35.

Still, he is an effective player.

Defense is largely about having the will and desire to commit and Temple has always done so.

With the Bulls last season, Temple averaged 7.6 points, 2.2 assists and 2.9 rebounds per game.

He shot just 33 percent from 3-point range but did shoot 80 percent from the free throw line.

Temple played in 56 games, starting 25.

Like Satoransky, Temple may not actually end up on the roster as offseason moves develop.

The second-round draft pick is a small piece, a bargaining chip down the road.

If you feel Ball was going to walk, the deal looks to be okay.

If you feel you could re-sign Ball and wanted to do so at the level he was paid, perhaps the deal was not enough.

When considering both possibilities, you must also take into consideration the signing of point guard Devonte’ Graham.

A young player (26), Graham is a good player who grew tremendously from his first season in the league to his second season, from averaging 4.7 points to averaging 18.2 points per game in 2019-20.

This past season, Graham averaged 14.8 points, 5.4 assists and 2.7 rebounds while committing just 1.5 turnovers per game. Graham shot 37.5 percent from 3-point range and 84.2 percent from the free throw line.

The comparisons with Ball are striking when you take into account Ball’s line of 14.6 points, 5.7 assists and 4.8 rebounds per game while committing 2.2 turnovers per game, along with Ball’s 37.8 percent from 3-point range and 78.1 percent from the free throw line.

Both are young players and both are entering their fifth year in the league.

You are replacing a player set to make over $21.25 million a year with a player set to make $11.75 million per year.

Of course, the Pelicans had to yield a 2022 lottery protected first-round pick to Charlotte to get Graham.

Of course, Graham, despite being a good player, was available due to the emergence of LaMelo Ball, an ironic twist in that he is the brother of Lonzo Ball.

The ability of Lonzo Ball is clear. There is a lot to like but what was maddening in his time in New Orleans was the level of inconsistency on display regularly.

When Ball was good, he was most often very good.

When Ball was not good, he was a non factor and disappeared, even on the bench in crunch time.

The move to let Ball go saves the Pelicans a substantial amount of money and there is substantial cap space remaining for New Orleans to make another move for a veteran piece.

There are shooters who could be on the team’s radar, including players like former Pelican Buddy Hield, Joe Ingles and Malcolm Brodgon. Duncan Robinson has already re-signed with Miami.

The bottom line on Ball is that the Pelicans could have kept him, if they wished. He was a restricted free agent and New Orleans could have matched any offer from Chicago but declined the option in favor of a trade.

Last but certainly but not least, New Orleans is clearly not a destination location for free agents, a very tough sell to get anyone here.

Keep in mind that New Orleans had real interest in Kyle Lowry, who signed quickly with Miami, and Chris Paul, who re-signed quickly with Phoenix. The Pelicans were rumored to be interest in Spencer Dinwiddie, who signed quickly with Washington.

The Pelicans have been linked by some to having interest in others, including Evan Fournier and Reggie Jackson.

The end result is that the Pelicans have to largely build a roster through the draft and through trades.

David Griffin previously stated that Ball wanted to remain in New Orleans.

Clearly, New Orleans had a different view of keeping Ball here.

Only time will tell if the Pelicans made the right decision or if it will bite them down the road.

In the case of Ball, his bite was simply not significant enough to bite when the Bulls called the bluff of New Orleans.