After a busy offseason in the gym, New Orleans Pelicans rookie Jeremiah Fears has caught the eye of head coach Willie Green this week, early in training camp.
Fears was named to the SEC All-Freshman Team last season at Oklahoma, averaging 17.1 points, 4.1 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.6 steals on 43.4% shooting from the field. He ranked seventh in the conference in scoring and seventh among all freshmen in the country.
The seventh pick established himself as one of the top guards in the country because of his diverse offensive skill set. He flourished in getting to the free-throw line, thanks to his lightning-quick speed and shiftiness inside the paint, which has stood out to Green.
“His ability to be able to use his speed and pace, so it is not always fast,” Green said. “Sometimes, it is fast to slow. Sometimes, it is slow to fast. He is allowing the offense to settle before he is attacking. That is something he is learning more and more, and the better he gets at it, the more he can attack opponents.”
Fears debuted with the Pelicans in the NBA Summer League, averaging 17.4 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.4 steals on 40% shooting from the field in five appearances. He finished off his stay in the desert with a 22-point, seven-rebound effort on July 18.
The team can see clear improvement from Fears since then, following his extended work on the court over the summer. It got to the point that team president Joe Dumars had to limit his time at the practice facility because he was there so much.
Fears impressed teammates during their open gym runs in the lead-up to training camp. He has done so in practice and appears to have earned an opportunity to play in the preseason.
“He is really good,” Green said. “It is impressive, to me, to see where he was and how much he has already grown. He has been in the gym all summer long. He has gotten stronger. His speed is incredible on both ends of the floor, defensively and offensively. Now, the pictures are becoming more clear. He is going to play in some games. He is going to make some mistakes, but his upside is tremendous.”