The massive news that occupied all the sports headlines in Louisiana on Sunday is that, after months of rumors and speculation, Lane Kiffin [has reportedly agreed to a contract](https://x.com/On3sports/status/1995022005498757434?s=20) to become the next head coach of LSU football. This news has distracted so many people and likely made many fans forget that the New Orleans Pelicans even played tonight, which is definitely a good thing, as they fell 133-121 to the Los Angeles Lakers.
I hate to sound like a broken record... but, in all honesty, it's getting extremely difficult to put a positive spin on anything this team does, given how the Pelicans have been stacking up losses.
Again, I am a huge Derik Queen guy, and I think he and Jeremiah Fears lay the foundation for a talented and exciting young core. However, losses like Sunday night make it extremely hard to accept the fact that this team doesn't own its 2026 first-round pick.
Derik Queen shot just 33 percent from the field and finished the game with a minus-22. Obviously, young players are going to have bad games and their ups and downs. Still, it's easier to accept that when you either enter a season with the expectation that you're rebuilding or winning games, which the Pelicans are doing neither of.
What I'm getting at is that by giving up as much as Troy Weaver and Joe Dumars to acquire Queen, it sets the most unrealistic expectations and puts an immense amount of pressure on him.
The other issue right now is that the teams most experienced and talented players aren't playing.
Health continues to be a struggle for this core
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The Pelicans' five highest-paid players were all out of the lineup, as Zion Williamson, Jordan Poole, Dejounte Murray, Trey Murphy III, and Herb Jones all were dealing with injuries. Every team deals with injuries, but not the same way the Pelicans do.
The core of Murphy III, Williamson, and Jones hasn't had a healthy season together ever, yet the new front office still decided to invest in them and bank their success on them this season. I won't sit here and lie and tell you that I wasn't entirely on board with the way this roster was built heading into the season.
However, I do find it ridiculous that, after a 3-18 start, we aren't even hearing rumors of a change—instead, it appears this front office is content to remain a bottom-feeder. The idea was to give this group of players one last chance to do something together and show the front office they were worth building around, and believe these first 21 games of this season have been enough of a chance.