The New Orleans Pelicans could eye Virginia Cavaliers center Ugonna Onyenso in the second round of the 2026 NBA mock draft.
The New Orleans Pelicans have a great talent evaluator in Troy Weaver and an aggressive leader in Joe Dumars, so they should never be counted out to grab a player that they like.
They have a second-round pick from the Detroit Pistons to work with in this year's draft, but have not ruled out the possibility of going higher. Right now, though, the focus should be on the players who will be available in the second round, whom the Pelicans could consider.
Continuing to go through second-round options, one player who makes sense is Virginia Cavaliers center Ugonna Onyenso. New Orleans needs to shake up their center, and the free agent class isn't that appetizing. Onyenso would add what they are currently lacking.
The Nigeria native spent four years in college. He originally joined the Kentucky Wildcats, where he spent two years, then played for the Kansas State Wildcats for a season before transferring to the Cavaliers. He was mostly a backup throughout his career, but filled a specific role well.
He averaged 6.5 points and 4.9 rebounds on 56.8/27.8/72.7 shooting splits. He was 10-of-36 on his three-point attempts. That's not a huge sample size, but it shows the potential to add a shot to his regular repertoire.
The most exciting stat of his was his ACC-leading 105 blocks last year (2.9 per game). He also had 2.8 blocks per game back in 2023/24. The Pelicans actually blocked the ball at a top-10 rate last year, but they need more rim protection from someone like Onyenso, who can bully people in the paint.
There isn't much to his defensive game, but he's seven feet tall and 245 pounds with an elite wingspan. He has such a high potential on defense and would be a swing at someone who can compete with the modern elite offensive centers like Victor Wembanyama and Zach Edey.
When New Orleans faced true size at the center position last year, they got dominated in the paint. Derik Queen has the potential to be a star thanks to his offense, but got pushed around all season. Yves Missi is a fantastic athlete, but didn't have the strength. Kevon Looney and DeAndre Jordan were their only real options for strength in the front court. That's not a recipe for success.
