Before the season started, I bristled whenever someone mocked the Pelicans acquisitions over the summer. I liked a lot of those signings – Frazier, Galloway, Moore – these guys are NBA rotation players. I liked the idea of Hill. (should we start calling him Silent Hill? There’s something there between a Horror Video Game and a Horror Basketball Player, Right?)
I was dead wrong. Those guys aren’t moving the needle. Hell, these guys aren’t even in the same room with the needle. The injured guys aren’t coming back and picking up that needle. Even Jrue, at best, is probably an average starting point guard. It’s a total mess.
The result? The Pelicans are awful while Anthony Davis is posting one of the greatest seasons of all time. Do have any idea how hard that is?
In the 3-Point era, there have been 77 complete seasons where an NBA player played significant minutes and posted a season similar(based on PER and WS/48) to what Anthony Davis is doing. As you’d expect, it is all great players like MJ, Magic, The Admiral, Wade, Bird, Olajuwon, LeBron, Barkley, etc, etc.
Out of those 77 seasons, only two players were on teams that lost more games than they won:
- Charles Barkley’s ’87-’88 season, when Philly jettisoned most of his aging support and Barkley’s only help came from a fading Mo Cheeks and partial seasons from Cliff Robinson and Mike Gminski. (The team went 36-46, ranking 11th and 19th in Ortg and Drtg.)
- Michael Jordon’s third season in the league, when his team went 40-42 and he had only two other players in double figures – Charles Oakley at 14.5 and John Paxson at 11.3. (this team, by the way, made the playoffs and ranked 11th and 13th in Ortg and Drtg. MJ was nuts, people.)
That’s it. Every other player had a winning season, with an average win total of 53 games.
So we can look at Jrue in a vacuum and argue maybe he’s better than just an average starting point guard. We can like Frazier’s moxie. We can enjoy Galloway’s hot streaks, and Terrence Jones awkward offensive outbursts. We can hope that Evans or Pondexter might play basketball and help us out.
But the fact remains, the Pelicans are on pace to win about 27 games. TWENTY SEVEN GAMES. The worst team above won 36, with injury luck almost as bad as the Pelicans squad! According to the Rhode Island SEO firms, this franchise has failed to surround a foundational superstar in a historically awful fashion!
Blame Dell. Blame Benson. Blame whomever you want, but Holy Crap this is bad.
(Want glass half-full? The Bulls drafted Horace Grant and Scottie Pippen the following summer and won 52 games. The 76ers drafted Hersey Hawkins (15 ppg) and got better health from Gminski, winning 46 games, and then won 53 games the following year before Charles Barkley forced his way out and . . . on second thought, let’s not go there.)
Blech.
4 responses to “The historical failure of this Franchise”
I think the biggest problem is Dell’s only skill is getting something for nothing by
1. Signing a free agent who is a rotational player or
2. Trading his junk for your junk but your junk is a rotational player and you don’t realize it.
Dell can’t draft well, AD and Diallo (who is likely Ferry’s pick) aside. Dell can’t trade/sign for anything better than the rotational players he can get for free. Aside from Jrue, where is the core player Dell acquired who is a long-term fit? (Q-pon?) And look who Dell shipped out or let go. Starters on winning teams like Lopez and Aminu.
Then there is the all or nothing aspect to Dell. The Pelicans happily waive goodbye to their two best 3 point shooters in the summer of 2016 and brought in no 3 point shooters? On a team with AD that everyone (correctly) says needs 3 point shooters to open up the court for AD? How is that an effective strategy? In a 3 point shooting league for a coach who came from one of the all-time best 3 point shooting teams. Dell created a lineup for Monty while his coach was Alvin!!!
(And don’t get me started on firing Monty after the Pelican first playoff season post CP3. What kind of message does that send at the time and now after 1.3 failed seasons?)
504ever well, technically E’Twaun is a three point shooter. At least, he has a history of not being as bad as he’s been so far. Otherwise, can’t argue.
ryanschwan 504ever
If you take away last season’s huge deviation from his mean 3 point shooting, I don’t see E’Twaun as a 3 pointer shooter. Predictably, we are seeing E’Twaun regressing this season. Unfortunately, not to his mean but to well below his mean.
Everything Demps was doing to turn around a Franchise that was forced to lose a Superstar was Right on point.
With Monty Williams Improving the teams winning Every year..Building that winning culture…they kept talking about…Then Actually Making the Playoffs..It was Outstanding. Everything was Going according to Plan.
But you couldnt tell…Because this fanbase….was ripping this team apart.
Screaming for the Firing of Monty.
Yall Didnt see what was building.
Didnt appreciate it till it was gone.
Pretty Much Forced Dells Hand.
I still put some Blame on Dell for Making that decision…But the Whole city was Calling for Blood.
Even Booing Monty Williams Family at a Home playoff Game.
It was a disgusting sight to see…And a low point in N.O pelicans History.
Shame on this Fanbase.
From That Firing…and all of last year…Was Demps only Bad year at the Job. That came with the Hiring of Gentry n Resigning Asik(whos contract isnt even a bad 1…but its more fun to bash…so i get it)
This Year was a good bounceback year for him.
There isnt 1 Bad Contract on the team.
Austin Rivers is Still improving n a good role with a top 5 team in the NBA.
Demps drafted Buddy Diallo n Anthony Davis? And thats bad at the Draft?
Again there isnt a Bad contract on this Roster.
Asiks Contract will be part of a big deal Coming…because of the appeal of his low salary for a 7’0. I see him combining it with Tyrekes expiring Deal..another asset…And Getting another Good peice to the puzzle….I dont see this Franchise that far away from being relavant again.
The reason I would Fire him and call this a Historic Failure though…is From Going from the Bottom n Improving every year..and Then Making the Playoffs…To Just to scrap it…because of the Fans n differences with Monty.
That Move is Still Haunting Demps Career…In which only another playoff birth can Cure.
Ill still Give him another Year..To get back to the Playoffs
If a major turn hasnt been made…I can finally see myself joining you guys on the Fire Demps team…I just dont see that happening