While the second go-round of NBA basketball in the Big Easy has been anything but easy on the eyes, that's not to say that the New Orleans Pelicans have been devoid of talent, with future Hall of Famers like Chris Paul and Anthony Davis suiting up for the franchise. With that in mind, Rotowire broke down the Pelicans' 'All-Quarter-Century' team, which includes both Paul and Davis, as well as a few other New Orleans stars in the hypothetical back-and-frontcourts.
Chris Paul (2005-2011)
The club's all-time leader in win shares (76.4) was their first star when New Orleans acquired the former Charlotte Hornets in 2002, joining the club back in 2005 as the fourth pick in the NBA Draft out of Wake Forest. From there, Paul went on to win the 2005-06 NBA Rookie of the Year award and was an All-Star each season from 2007-08 through his departure from Louisiana in 2011. For his efforts, Paul earns the first spot on our franchise-wide 'All-Quarter-Century' team, having averaged 18.7 points per game on 47.1% shooting in 425 games played, racking up 76.4 of his 215.1 career win shares in The Boot.
Jrue Holiday (2013-2020)
While Holiday began his marathon of an NBA career as a member of the Philadelphia 76ers, the veteran of 16 seasons played the most games with the Pelicans, suiting up 415 times between 2013-14 and 2019-20. In that time, Holiday accumulated 28.5 of his 74.6 career win shares, averaging 17.6 points per game on 46.2% shooting. Holiday never made an NBA All-Star Game as a member of the Pelicans but was on the NBA All-Defense team in 2017-18 while being a finalist for the Defensive Player of the Year as well.
Brandon Ingram (2019-2025)
While Davis gets a lot of shine for his play in the paint, one of the players that New Orleans acquired from the Los Angeles Lakers in the deal went on to shine in the Big Easy. That's because forward Brandon Ingram has posted 22.7 of his 27.3 career win shares with the Pelicans, including a career-high 5.3 in 2020-21, the year after he made his lone All-Star Game appearance and won the NBA Most Improved Player award. While Ingram struggled through his fair share of injuries last year, playing in 18 games and posting no win shares at all, Ingram was a solid presence at the three positions for the Pelicans since coming over from L.A., before being moved by the club to the Toronto Raptors at the trade deadline this past season. While Ingram may be gone, his presence will not be forgotten anytime soon in New Orleans.
Anthony Davis (2012-2019)
Few players embodied the rise of the Pelicans organization quite like Davis, who was taken No. 1 by the club out of Kentucky back in 2012 before suiting up 466 times with the Pelicans between then and his trade to the Lakers in 2019. During that time, Davis averaged 23.7 points, 10.5 rebounds and 2.4 blocks per game, finishing third in the MVP race in 2017-18 and fifth in 2014-15. In total, Davis pulled down 72.0 win shares with the Pelicans, managing 32.7 VORP in that time, while becoming the franchise's first cornerstone player after Paul's departure in 2011.
David West (2003-2011)
The fifth and final member of the Pelicans' roster played more than half his games in New Orleans, with David West suiting up in 530 games (out of 1,034 total), while making two All-Star Games and averaging 16.4 points per game in the post for the Western Conference club. During that run, West put together 47.0 win shares (out of his 85.8 career total), cementing his status as a hard-working big man on a team that was short on success during his eight-year run with the Pelicans.
