LAS VEGAS -- The New Orleans Pelicans have the most impressive rookie I've seen so far at the NBA summer league. Oh, and they have No. 1 overall pick Zion Williamson too.
While Zion's summer was cut short after less than one half of basketball due to a knee bruise, Monday night saw the long-awaited debut of the Pelicans' other two first-round picks. Because they were acquired via the Anthony Davis trade (and a second trade with the Atlanta Hawks), No. 8 pick Jaxson Hayes and No. 17 pick Nickeil Alexander-Walker were previously unable to play for New Orleans. So too was second-round pick Marcos Louzada Silva.
Before Monday's game against the Chicago Bulls, a member of the Pelicans' front office said the rookies were so excited to play that Alexander-Walker had to be reminded to breathe when he got on the court. They proved to be worth the wait, stealing the show in a blowout 109-72 win over the Bulls. Let's take a closer look at what we saw from New Orleans' other three rookies.
Alexander-Walker showcases broad skill set
Matched for much of the night against No. 7 pick Coby White in a battle of point guards wearing the No. 0, Alexander-Walker easily got the better of the more touted White. Alexander-Walker showed off a little of everything he can do in posting 23 points on 9-of-16 shooting, eight assists, three steals and two blocks.
It's hard to say which was more impressive: Alexander-Walker's shooting or his playmaking out of the pick-and-roll. Both go together to some extent. Alexander-Walker is already a pull-up 3-point threat, forcing defenders to chase him through screens and giving him more room to operate. Alexander-Walker took full advantage, unleashing a series of hard one-handed passes that set up teammates.
The most impressive find for Alexander-Walker came on an after-timeout play in the second quarter in which Hayes screened for him on the right side of the court going to Alexander-Walker's strong left hand. He got a step on the defense and curled a wraparound pass to Hayes, diving hard to the rim. Hayes leaped out of the gym to finish over defender Mychal Mulder, who tried to take a charge, with a highlight-reel dunk plus the foul. (Chicago challenged the call, which remained a blocking foul.)
Besides going 3-of-6 from beyond the arc, Alexander-Walker was also solid as a finisher, scoring with his left hand from a difficult angle on one drive. He also added a memorable dunk of his own in a two-on-one situations after a steal in the backcourt.
Alexander-Walker was up to the challenge of defending White, containing him off the dribble using length. He flashed impressive instincts as a defender in the open court, playing a hit-ahead pass like a free safety and coming up with a steal. His length also contributed to a pair of blocks, one of them on a White drive and another as he contested a jumper.
It won't always look this easy for Alexander-Walker, who was fresh Monday while White was playing his third game in four days and looked a little worn down. Nonetheless, his debut gave believers even more reason to think he's one of the steals of the draft.
High-flying Hayes
Above and beyond their individual merits, Alexander-Walker and Hayes showed immediate chemistry in their first game together. Including the highlight dunk, seven of Alexander-Walker's eight assists went to Hayes. Those accounted for seven of Hayes' 10 field goals as he scored a game-high 28 points on 10-of-15 shooting.
Because of his hops, Hayes is a constant lob threat, and the Bulls frequently had little recourse but to foul him. He went to the free throw line 14 times, making eight of them, atypically poor accuracy for a 74 percent shooter on free throws in his lone season at Texas.
The other Hayes highlights came on defense, where he blocked three shots. The most notable was a play during which Hayes chased down Chandler Hutchison in transition to demolish his shot attempt. In half-court defense, Hayes did a nice job at times of getting to the spot before the offensive player and using verticality to contest. At others, he was too aggressive in pursuit of blocks, leading to his five fouls in 21 minutes.
Hayes' poor rebounding was the biggest knock on him as a prospect. He grabbed just two defensive boards Monday, though New Orleans rebounded well as a team, securing more than 80 percent of available defensive rebounds. Despite his lack of boards, it didn't appear the skinny Hayes was getting pushed around on the glass.
Didi introduces himself
College fans were plenty familiar with Alexander-Walker and Hayes, both of whom starred in major conferences last season. Few people besides Brazilians and NBA scouts had seen Louzada Silva, a lanky 20-year-old wing who goes by the nickname Didi. If not as dominant as Alexander-Walker, Louzada Silva nevertheless impressed in his introduction to American fans, scoring 13 points on 5-of-10 shooting.
Louzada Silva showed NBA 3-point range both off the catch and off the dribble, making three of his four attempts beyond the arc. And he took advantage of long arms to finish a tough shot in traffic around the rim and to block a pair of shots at the other end.
It appears summer league will be Louzada Silva's only appearance in a Pelicans uniform for a while, as ESPN's Jonathan Givony reported last week Silva is expected to sign with the Sydney Kings as part of the Australian NBL's "Next Stars" development program. Louzada Silva will have an NBA out in his contract next summer, meaning we could be a year away from seeing him in New Orleans.