Baylor Bears’ Yves Missi was the 21st overall pick by the New Orleans Pelicans in the 2024 NBA Draft. The 20-year-old recently played his first game for the franchise in the summer league. After the game, Missi had a brief conversation with the media where he was asked about his skills and whether he’s trying to hone his craft by learning from the dominant big men in the NBA.
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In response, the Pelicans center said that he watches the other bigs in the league very closely and there’s a lot he’d like to take from them and implement in his own game.
Missi named two of the most dominant centers in the NBA right now, Joel Embiid and Nikola Jokic. However, the third player the 20-year-old named during the conversation was an unlikely choice. Missi declared that he tries to follow Dallas Mavericks’ Derek Lively very closely as well.
However, Missi choosing to name Lively is not a surprising move. Lively impressed everyone with his hustle and consistency as a rookie last season, playing a pivotal role as the starting center of the Mavs side that made it to the 2024 NBA Finals.
As for the skills Missi wants to pick up from the aforementioned big men, the Pelicans rookie said, “Passing from Jokic, Joel Embiid post touch, just everything to be honest.”
This is the perfect example of a youngster who is willing to soak in every bit of wisdom that the league has to offer. At the age of 20, such attitude will help him propel to the next level.
"Almost everyone, Joel Embiid, Derek Lively, Jokic… Passing from Jokic, Joel Embiid post touch, just everything to be honest"
— Yves Missi on big men he watches to try and take from their games pic.twitter.com/urxEcmQfIk
— Pelicans Film Room (@PelsFilmRoom) July 13, 2024
However, Missi’s debut for the Pelicans didn’t start on a high note as his team ended up losing to the Wolves.
In his 21 minutes of playing time as a starting center, the Pelican scored six points with eight rebounds and two assists. He was the second lowest scorer among the starting five.
The Wolves proved to be the better team against them as four of their starters clocked points in double digits in the 81-74 contest.
David Griffin dismisses center concerns for the Pelicans
At the time of restructuring and building teams, the Pelicans are very content with what they have. Recently, David Griffin made a statement for his team, saying that they don’t need to focus on adding another big to their side as they have a perfect game plan for the team that they have.
He said, “I know everybody thinks we have to invest in the center position a little bit. We actually are really excited about what we have now. We are excited to play small and fast.”
In that equation, the Pelicans have Daniel Theis as their primary big man and Missi will become the backup when the season starts. They have another major asset in Zion Williamson who can play small if the need be. In the fast-paced nature of that game, Missi will prove to be another effective asset that they have.
