The New Orleans Pelicans have a lot of question marks about what to expect from key players on their roster. But there's no such question mark about Jordan Hawkins' role: He's here to shoot.
That's what he did at UConn in his sophomore season, leading the Huskies to a national championship and playing his way into the Pelicans' sights at No. 14 overall in last week's draft.
"We were very fortunate and excited when he was there at No. 14 that we could grab him and bring him here into the fold," Trajan Langdon said at the rookie's introductory press conference. "We think he’s the best shooter, we thought he was the best shooter in the draft, thought he was the best shooter in college basketball this year."
It's high praise, but it's far from unwarranted. Hawkins, a 6-5 guard, shot over 38% from beyond the arc and made 109 3-pointers. That came despite opponents knowing full well he was the shooter and doing everything they could to stop him. That was evidenced by the 23 fouls drawn while shooting 3s over the course of the season, a figure that led all D-1 players.
Those fouls were such a common occurrence in large part because of Hawkins' skills as a movement shooter. Running constantly, coming off screens, catching the ball on the run and pulling up instantly for the shot. It's a technique he began to hone at high school powerhouse Dematha Catholic, and modeled after players like Steph Curry and Klay Thompson. When Hawkins arrived at UConn, he then turned to highlights of former UConn greats Ray Allen and Rip Hamilton. Allen still holds the Huskies' record with 115 3-pointers made in the 1995-'96 season, a mark Hawkins narrowly missed.
Still, Hawkins knows there's more to his game and he's eager to show it.
“People target me as a shooter, but last year, I’ll be honest, our team was just so deep that I had to take a step back and just take that role," Hawkins said. "I can put the ball on the floor, can create when I have to, play-make. I just do what the team needs me to do.”
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Hawkins also knows he'll have to get stronger, and he's taken a positive step in that direction by putting on 10 pounds this offseason. He's also not concerned about the step up to the NBA in terms of atmosphere, and he's got a fair reason for that.
“I would say that Final Four game felt like a playoff game in the NBA," Hawkins said. "You’re playing in front of 75,000 people. The refs are not really gonna call anything, it’s really physical. I think that prepared me really well.”
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