NBA Rookie Power Rankings: Bub Carrington sets the bar; Polarizing big makes waves
5. Yves Missi, New Orleans Pelicans
Why Yves Missi deserves ROY consideration: Heading into the start of the season, there probably wasn't a ton of expectations placed on the shoulders of Yves Missi. Most of that was due to the fact that the New Orleans Pelicans had the intention of playing small with how deep of a roster they had. However, once the injuries began to pile up for the Pelicans, it quickly became clear that there was going to be a clear role for Missi to play this season for New Orleans - especially considering they didn't have a natural center on the roster (aside from Daniel Theis).
In the short time that Missi has found the court, he's left his mark for the Pelicans. The 21 overall pick from the 2024 NBA Draft is averaging six points, six rebounds, and 1.5 blocks per game in 22 minutes of action per game for the Pelicans so far this season. As a player who was projected to be more of a defensive-leaning prospect heading into the NBA, there have been some positive signs he's been able to show on the offensive end of the floor too. However, for a team that had a clear need at the center position, Missi has shown some promising signs as a long-term prospect for the Pelicans.
Why Yves Missi could fall out of the ROY race: But for as good as Missi has been in stints over the course of the first few weeks of the season for the Pelicans, there could be a chance he begins to take somewhat of a step back over the next few months. As the Pelicans begin to get healthy again, I can't help but wonder if that could mean a lesser role for Missi. Maybe there's a scenario in which Missi has impacted enough that he's cemented a spot in the rotation, healthy or not, for the Pelicans.
However, I'd expect that the odds are that once the Pelicans are back to full strength, we're going to see this team try to make a run up the standings in the Western Conference in hopes of salvaging the season. And if that does happen, it could spell the end of an extended role for Missi. Nevertheless, one thing is clear, the Pelicans may have found their potential long-term center. Utilizing a late first-round pick on Missi, that was the hope behind making the selection in the 2024 NBA Draft.