With the departure of Jrue Holiday from the New Orleans Pelicans to The Milwaukee Bucks, a glaring hole was left in the lineup. In the trade New Orleans received Eric Bledsoe and Steven Adams, along with an overhaul of draft picks.

In the 2020 NBA draft the Pelicans made it a point to fill the hole that Holiday left behind. With three out of four picks New Orleans had, they drafted a guard. On the same notion, the Pelicans only kept one out of the four rostered on the team, that being Kira Lewis Jr.

With the 13th overall pick in the NBA draft the Pelicans selected Kira Lewis Jr., point guard out of Alabama. Lewis will fit in perfectly with the fast pace style offense that New Orleans runs. He has a never-ending motor and an eye for the basket. Lewis draws so much attention from defenders that he makes it look effortless orchestrating the offensive game. His finesse and quickness arguably make him the one of the best guards coming out of the 2020 draft.

The following three picks made by New Orleans were all traded away for draft capital. With the recent trades, the Pelicans have secured high value draft picks for the next seven years.

With the Pelicans acquisition of the big-man Adams from the Oklahoma City Thunder, New Orleans is sitting comfortably approaching the 2021 season. Adams will offer much needed basketball IQ to a young Pelicans squad. New Orleans extended Adams on a two-year $35 million contract. Securing the center for the next two years will give some time to the 2019 8th overall pick Jaxson Hayes to develop in strength and in game.

The Pelicans are setting building blocks for the future. This year they acquired countless picks and young talent, while also building a team that could potentially make a playoff run in 2021.