Even though the front office has already used their 2026 NBA Draft pick on Derrick Queen, the New Orleans Pelicans will be scouring NCAA March Madness for some late second-round pick intel, especially during Sweet Sixteen action. Arkansas, UConn, Illinois and Houston are filled with former McDonald's All-Americans thriving in supporting cast roles. St. John's is obviously a sleeper, but they also have a great heritage connection that's worth noting.
Fortunately, the current roster construction makes NBA Draft scouting priorities clear. Dejounte Murray is the current at point guard, while Jeremiah Fears represents the future. Trey Murphy III has a wing spot secured, and Zion Williamson anchors the frontcourt when healthy. This leaves two glaring needs for the Pelicans: another wing/off-ball guard to act as Herb Jones insurance and a reliable big to step up Yves Missy and Derrick Queen for minutes.
The Sweet Sixteen provides a timely scouting window for five under-the-radar names who fit those ideals.
Pelicans look for shooters
Andrej Stojakovic (SG/SF, Illinois) Averaged 13.5 points and 4.5 rebounds, but production fluctuated wildly. A 30-point game is sandwiched between a week's single-point duels. He completely disappeared against Michigan (0 points, 1 rebound, 2 fouls, 1 turnover) and dropped 21 points and 12 rebounds on Oregon in the next game. Finding a way to stoke that fire for an 82-game season is perhaps the most challenging step in developing a player.
Shooting (24.1%3PA) is also an issue. He has made only three three-pointers since Valentine's Day; However, shooting 62% from inside the arc and his rim-attacking mentality give him a realistic NBA offensive floor. Stojakovic's size, coupled with his pedigree and versatility at the shooting guard/small forward position, should draw real front-office attention when Illinois takes on Houston.
There is never a dull moment together Emmanuel Sharp (SG, Houston)A senior sharpshooter who has quietly spent four years becoming one of the best two-way guards in college basketball. The 6-foot-3 combo guard is averaging 15.3 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game this season, while shooting 40.7% from the field and a career-high 37.5% from three-point range. He was named to the All-Big 12 Team, the Big 12 All-Defensive Team, and earned Big 12 Tournament Most Outstanding Player honors after averaging 20.7 points, 4.0 rebounds and three 3-pointers per game in three tournament games.
Houston's run to its sixth consecutive Sweet Sixteen is based, in part, on Sharp's reliability. He scored 18 points in the second-round win over Texas A&M and is averaging 17.0 points through two tournament games. He is now Houston's career 3-point field goal leader with 277 triples. For the Pelicans, Sharp represents the off-ball shooting guard and glue-guy ideal they often lack. Consider a high-upside Jose Alvardao replacement. Sharp is a player who is capable of guarding multiple positions, spacing the floor, and competing in high-leverage possession with or without the ball.
If the Pelicans prioritize toughness and defensive tenacity, Sharp is a logical target. A key part of Kelvin Sampson's suffocating system, the scrappy fighter brings an edge that translates to winning basketball.
Sweet Sixteen's Slugfest
With apologies to Coach Cal, Trayvon Brazile (PF/C, Arkansas) Perhaps the most astute individual in the Sweet Sixteen. Public draft boards took him anywhere from his late 20s and never heard his name called, even though the 6-foot-10, 230-pound Arkansas forward averaged 13.2 points, 7.4 rebounds and 1.6 assists while shooting 53% from the field. He has posted multiple double-doubles during SEC play, including a career-high 28-point outburst against Texas.
What makes the Brazilian particularly attractive to a Pelicans team in roster flux is his combination of length and touch. He has a wingspan of 7 feet 3.75 inches and a maximum height of 41 inches, giving him the physical profile of a legitimate NBA rim protector and rebounder. He also demonstrated range this season and shot 36% from beyond the arc, a skill that matches up well with Williamson in modern frontcourt alignments.
If there is any doubt Tyrese Reed Jr. (PF/C, UConn) were in the NBA conversation, his first-round performance against Furman erased it. The 6-foot-11, 265-pound center scored 31 points and grabbed 27 rebounds in the Huskies' 82–71 opening round victory, a stat line that had not been posted in an NCAA Tournament game since Bill Walton in 1972. Reed made 15 of 15 shots from the field in that performance and became the first player in 54 years to have 30 points, 20 rebounds and shoot 80% from the field. In a tournament game.
Reed's regular season statistics are equally impressive. He averaged 14.5 points and 8.5 rebounds with a 62.5% field goal percentage and earned first-team All-Big East honors after being named the conference's Sixth Man of the Year last season. He transferred to UConn after two seasons at Michigan, and the adjustment to Dan Hurley's program has been seamless. The knock on Reed remains his free-throw shooting (54.6%), a flaw that may limit his NBA range but shouldn't disqualify him from being a late second-round flyer.
Finally, looking at the biggest underdog, Dillon Mitchell (PF, St. John's) This is probably the most interesting name on this list, as he doesn't appear in the box score like a traditional prospect. The 6-foot-8-inch, 205-pound forward from Tampa is averaging 8.2 points, 7.1 rebounds and a remarkable 3.1 assists per game this season, while shooting 55.2%. Those assist numbers from a power forward are essentially unheard of, and they reflect a skill set that clearly translates to the modern NBA.
A long, switchable, pass-first frontcourt piece who can run the offense on multiple levels, Mitchell may be the best low-risk, high-reward prospect to put next to Derrick Queen. Maybe not long term, but it would make for some fun NBA Summer League hoops this summer. St. John's has gone 19-1 at one point since Mitchell was reinserted into the starting lineup this season, and that's no coincidence.
Mitchell is a McDonald's All-American who has played at three programs (Texas, Cincinnati) after becoming one of the most highly traveled portal prospects in recent memory, and his basketball IQ has only sharpened under Rick Pitino.
As the Sweet Sixteen unfolds, the focus will naturally fall on the star players and Cinderella stories. However, for the Pelicans' scouting department, the real task is to evaluate how these five potential second-round targets handle the pressure of high-stakes tournament basketball. In the margins of the NBA Draft, intel is the currency, and New Orleans would be wise to collect as much as possible on this quintet of underdogs.
