Jonas Valanciunas isn’t the first name that springs to mind when thinking of the Pelicans. He’s also not likely to be the second, third or fourth player to roll off the majority of tongues. But while most of his teammates command greater attention, a determination needs to be made very soon on the future of an integral component of the roster; Valanciunas’ contract expires at season’s end.
The Pelicans should strongly contemplate on traversing a road that extends the starting center’s stay in New Orleans because a better option is far from obvious.
No one possesses a stronger combination of professionalism and reliability than Valanciunas inside the locker room. He’s missed a total of 11 games over the last two and half seasons. During this current campaign, head coach Willie Green is penciling JV in for 14 points and 10 rebounds every time out — he’s yet to miss a contest.
“I think the guy who has really, really impacted our team these past couple of years is JV,” CJ McCollum said last month. “He does all of the dirty work. Touches are not always there consistently. His minutes are not always there consistently. But he’s a professional and he’s a walking double-double.”
Only Nikola Jokic, Domantas Sabonis, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Nikola Vucevic have accumulated more double-doubles since Valanciunas was traded to New Orleans and he’s accomplished that feat averaging far fewer minutes than his elite brethren.
Consistency is what sets Valanciunas apart and makes him extremely valuable to the Pelicans, especially at his perceived market price. He is earning 15.4 million this season and it’s believed his next contract will be in the same ballpark. This should not be overlooked on a roster with three players earning over $30 million this season and next — who have been prone to miss games in the past — and Trey Murphy’s rookie extension (most likely to be a max deal or close to it) looming on the horizon.
To the keen observer, Valanciunas is in the midst of compiling his finest season at 31 years of age. Not only is he in the process of setting or nearing personal bests in numerous key categories for his career, he’s made clear sacrifices for the betterment of the team.
| MIN | PTS/36 | 3PAr | OREB% | DREB% | AST% | TOV% | STL% | BLK% | USG% | TS% |
| 26.8 (4) | 14.2 (7) | .190 (1) | 10.2% (11) | 29.7% (7) | 12.5% (2) | 11.8% (3) | 1.0% (t-1) | 4.4% (t-1) | 20.0% (8) | 64.3% (1) |
Valanciunas’ usage has taken a noticeable dip this season, with much of the roster enjoying good health. In addition to scoring less and receiving fewer shot attempts, the rebounding is down, especially on the offensive end. But there’s been zero complaints and the reasoning is simple. Valanciunas has mentioned time and again of just how much fun he and the rest of the team are having.
Although it goes against the instincts of a traditional back-to-the-basket center, Valancuinas is spending more time on the perimeter to keep the paint freer from multiple defenders for Brandon Ingram, Zion Williamson and cutters. He’s willingly chasing less offensive rebounds. Moreover, his actions haven’t slowed the offense; in fact, they’ve aided it.
Valanciunas has been a greater threat from the arc this season. He’s taking and making 3-pointers at the best clips of his career. In fact, he’s proven to be a reliable outlet anywhere on the court, comparing incredibly favorable to one of the best shooting bigs in the league in Karl-Anthony Towns.
| 0-3 feet | 3-10 feet | 10-16 feet | 16 feet – 3PT | 3PT | |
| Jonas Valanciunas | 75.8 FG% | 53.6 FG% | 47.7 FG% | 47.1 FG% | 38.0 FG% |
| Karl-Anthony Towns | 67.4 FG% | 49.7 FG% | 46.8 FG% | 38.9 FG% | 40.7 FG% |
Valanciunas is a savvy basketball player who is able to rely more on intelligence than most at his position, proving to be a very capable passer when presented the opportunity.
On the defensive end, Valanciunas will never morph into a top tier rim protector, but he’s on his way to posting the best steal and block percentages of his career. He’s adept at guarding his space in and close to the lane and has a great understanding of what opponent’s are trying to do.
“JV’s been huge,” Willie Green said after a win over the Wizards last month. “He’s been incredible all season long. Tonight was no different. He came into the game and dominated the boards, which once again, he’s kicking out to our wings, guards and we’re attacking. He was good defensively for us. Then we tried to throw the ball down to him a bit in the post. We know what we’re going to get from JV pretty much night in and night out. Tonight, he had a huge night rebounding the ball and another double-double.”
This has been the standard response about Valanciunas from coaches and players alike all season long. He has served as a great role model for the younger core. It’s also important to note that there’s no viable alternative sitting on the roster who can begin to replicate JV’s contributions across the board.
For a team that has hovered near the top of the defensive rankings for the last year and a half, the Pelicans should continue to explore avenues to retain Valanciunas because the greater struggles have come on the offensive end. Adding Jarrett Allen or Nicolas Claxton feels redundant with a number of defense-first players already occupying the roster in Herb Jones, Dyson Daniels, Jose Alvarado, Larry Nance and Naji Marshall.
While the rim defense would undoubtedly improve, the offensive spacing could become an even greater issue, among other things. McCollum is the only real threat from 3-point range in the starting lineup, with Ingram, Jones and Valanciunas sometimes serving as capable floor extenders. Removing any one of them seems like a bad idea for a group that already struggles to keep up with the competition in getting up enough attempts from the outside.
Replacing Jones with Trey Murphy in the starting lineup would be a huge gamble, likely impacting the team’s desired identity to some degree. There exists a real harmony between the coaches, the stars and the rest of the players at this given moment. Ingram and Williamson have never contributed more effort defensively. The team’s never been on the same page so often. Moving Jones, the captain of the defense, to the bench would be awkward at best, perhaps cataclysmic at worst.
Sitting at 23-15 in the standings and poised to enjoy one of their best regular seasons in franchise history, the Pelicans should be extremely wary of creating any seismic ripples through a major personnel change. The roster is exhibiting genuine balance, a nice blend of talent on the court with relationships just as strong off of it.
Can Valanciunas be the starting center on an NBA Finals team? That’s difficult to say, but that’s also not where the Pelicans realistically sit on their timeline. Williamson has never been in the playoffs. Ingram’s appeared in only one series. While the young core has grown a lot, they’re still largely inexperienced in big moments. For the interim, Valanciunas makes for a wonderful and stable choice at the 5.
The Pelicans have until June 30th to sign Valanciunas to an extension. They also have the option of moving him before the February 8 trade deadline, so as to not lose an asset entirely this summer. But the goal should be abundantly clear.
“They’re a very complete team,” Greg Popovich said after the Pelicans beat the Spurs 121-106 on Dec. 1. “They’ve got Valanciunas on the block. He rules it down there. He’s a tough dude to take care of.”
It would behoove the Pelicans to take care of Jonas Valanciunas soon and extend his stay in New Orleans for awhile longer, because as Pop said, he still rules his domain well. Signing him to another two-year contract, with more money getting divvied out next year while continuing to search for the future at the center position, seems ideal.
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I was in the trade Jonas camp for awhile (because this might be his peak value year). But he is a great value and a stabilizing force in the lineup and in the locker room.
The better question is whether we should trade LNJ. I just worry that he is fragile, and if he goes down, we really don’t have someone like him to take his place against more mobile centers.
Team doesn’t need wings, it doesn’t need more scoring (although I will never turn my nose up at a shooter). But it definitely could use a back up PG beyond Jose, and another banger on the boards.