The New Orleans Pelicans don’t have anything to play for in the final two games of the regular season. Therefore, fans may think that there is no reason to tune in to Friday’s game against the Celtics and Sunday’s season finale against the Timberwolves. <\/p>\n
Well, those fans would be wrong. <\/p>\n
The Pelicans’ standout rookie, Jeremiah Fears, is giving basketball fans plenty of reasons to pay attention to the final few days of the season. <\/p>\n
0 Fears spin move and finish over the big pic.twitter.com\/VS9ZT0K88T<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Pelicans Film Room (@PelsFilmRoom) April 8, 2026<\/a>Jeremiah Fears Has Been a Joy to Watch in Recent Weeks<\/p>\n The most important thing for the Pelicans organization at this point is the future. They have understandably sat their veterans in the win over the Jazz to give a chance to players further down the pecking order. This means that we may have seen the last of Zion Williamson, Trey Murphy, Herb Jones, Dejounte Murray, and Saddiq Bey this season. <\/p>\n More importantly, however, it means that Fears, alongside other young talent on the team, will play as many minutes as he can handle down the stretch. <\/p>\n Against the Jazz, this was 38 minutes. The 19-year-old point guard put up a career night with 40 points, five rebounds, six assists, and three steals. <\/p>\n For anyone who was paying attention in the last few weeks, this wasn’t that surprising. Fears has hit new levels since the beginning of March, playing with a ton of confidence and purpose. The talented youngster has taken on a role as the leader of the bench unit and is averaging 15.5 points and 3.8 assists in 24.3 minutes per game in that span. His 46.8\/38.6\/79.6 shooting splits are a sign of what’s to come next season<\/a> as Fears looks like a much-improved shooter and a more efficient scorer. <\/p>\n Fears’ watchability goes way beyond his production. The Chicago native is as dynamic with the ball as any young playmaker in the league. His handles are well beyond his years. He can beat his defender one-on-one on a regular basis thanks to his elite ball-handling ability. He can get to his spots and to the rim at will. His speed and quick first step make him difficult to stay in front of, whether it’s in the half-court or in transition. <\/p>\n The skill level of Fears is undeniable. Watching him for a few minutes is enough to realize that he is a unique and creative talent. The questions about him heading into the NBA were about his physicality, intensity, defensive chops, and off-ball ability. Throughout his rookie campaign, he has done an excellent job improving in all of these areas. He is a better shooter and defender now than he was earlier in the season. This makes him a more complete basketball player that fans should catch a glimpse of before his season is over on Sunday. <\/p>\n