Will the history of thick eyebrows repeat itself in Cain? Cain's next step may follow Davis' example

The Pelicans gave up their draft assets this summer in an attempt to clean up the mess left over from the last offseason. Will the new management repeat the mistakes of the past and put Cain Williamson on the same old path of "being painted a big pie" with thick eyebrows?

The Anthony Davis deal marked a lot of new Orleans' short basketball history. Not only did this deal take the team's façade that had been painstakingly managed for 7 years, but the Pelicans got the salary space they dreamed of, but unfortunately it was intended to assist Davis.

The Brow era began in 2013, when Dale Dempse exchanged two lotto picks for his right-hand man, Juju Holliday, a "rookie" who had just been named an All-Star. Since then, pelicans have been rebuilding every second, sacrificing the future and focusing on the present. For example, they exchanged a first-round pick for O'mil Asik, and an untimely exchange for Cousins.

In the Cousins deal, the new manager David Griffin not only got a few young instant combat, but also had enough Lakers draft picks. Seventeen months after trading Holliday, he intensified, giving the Pelicans' starting lineup a few years younger. As a result, the Pelicans didn't even have a star of the year, letting go of the man who could stand alone on the defensive end of the playoffs. But no matter what, the Pelicans finally have the capital to rebuild.

The problem is that no matter how it works, perhaps because the top doesn't want to see a bunch of players coming and going, they're always dissatisfied with the speed of reconstruction. Although Depps' unrealistic rebuilding plan was finally turned over, Griffin immediately drew a new grand blueprint, claiming that "our team's goal is only to win!" ”

In the first year of the program, the Pelicans built a team around Cain and other young cores, bringing in Derek Favors and JJ Redick, who were still in their current years, and ended in a season of failure. In the second year, the team's goal is to improve the defense and play aggressive. So Van Gundy, Eric Bledsoe and Steven Adams came, and Van Gundy once said they were unstoppable. The Van Gundy Pelicans ended the season with even worse defensive efficiency, with ten games as low as 0.500.

Griffin's credit is that he didn't let the problem get worse. Eight months into his presidency, Van Gundy fired the former, convincing the upper echelons to take millions of dollars in losses — something unimaginable to have been under the original management. He then abandoned his plan to forge the Predator, traded Bledsoe and Adams, and traded Ronus Valanciunas from the Grizzlies. After this operation, the pelicans' holdings changed from 10th to 17th and from 40th to 51st. In addition, they also need to send the Lakers' 2022 protected top ten first round picks to the Grizzlies at Thursday's draft.

Optimistically, the Pelicans have some effect in consuming these draft picks. Although Griffin's tons of draft picks are easy to think of — trade some heavyweight stars or white lotto picks, like the Nets gave to the Celtics. But the fundamental goal is to rebuild, to be like the eagles, they get the important puzzle Capella.

Cain's shift from a low-post behemoth to a flexible point guard still requires minor changes to the roster, while the extra draft assets in hand give the Pelicans more options. From this perspective, New Orleans upgraded the center configuration, vacated a 20 million salary cap this summer, and paid only one first-round pick at the end of next year, seven draft picks and second-round trading rights this year.

Even if Valanciunas' jump shot can do what Adams can't do — help Zeine open up space , even if the new players on the defensive line can bring a whole new chemistry, the extra salary spent by management is still a lot of money. If they hadn't taken back Bledsoe in the Holliday deal, or extended adams out for two years, they could have saved more money under the salary cap. Preparing for the Lakers' "post-LeBron era" in advance is certainly a good choice, especially considering the previous three consecutive "happy" picks — one of which was too bad.

The Pelicans are different, but The struggles of the early days of Cain's career are reminiscent of Davis' situation. Sacrificing the future of the team and doing some painless lineup upgrades; some restricted free agents such as Ball are also putting pressure, like Eric Gordon did in 2012; a bad defensive system; a restless locker room, a fading cohesion... These are the problems pelicans are currently facing. Before the Cain family expressed their dissatisfaction to the media, Davis' father also publicly questioned the operation of the team in the stadium.

If there is a difference between the two, the next few weeks will be able to see the difference. Whether a trade will be available on Monday depends on how the Pelicans use their salary space, but big-name free agents are often reluctant to go. In fact, Redick, whom the Pelicans once chased, left in March — and the breakup was also undignified.

Kyle Lowry is also on the roster, and he can play the same positive role as Paul's rookie suns. The most prudent approach may be to bring in Ronzo Bauer, if possible. The truth is, neither is quite appropriate. Any ups and downs in Lowry's form could make the 36-year-old veteran's contract rotten; Ball could cause a locker room conflict under Van Gundy.

Time will tell, and the Pelicans understand how many bumps they will go through on the road to developing epoch-making players. Given the popular transfer phenomenon among superstars today, the Pelicans may be scrambling. No superstar has ever forced a departure at the end of his rookie contract, but with such a tempting market prospect, Cain may become the first to eat crabs. While this is just a concern, the Pelicans should take it seriously. The good news is that they have been very adamant about firing Van Gundy and are looking to make a change in the offseason. Future trading flexibility is just as important as salary accumulation, but all of it is to cultivate the next Davis or Cairn, otherwise what about the future?