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New Orleans Pelicans Season Preview Part 1
Bourbon Street Shots writers preview the 2014-15 season by tackling 10 of the most intriguing questions heading into the season. 1. Is this finally the year that Eric Gordon comes close to living up to his contract? Michael McNamara: Well, I guess this has a couple of parts to break down. When we say close, I […]
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In Defense of Being Young
Aside from having seemingly every player injured for significant portions of the season, there has been nothing more frustrating in the last 2 seasons than watching opponents carve up New Orleans defenses night after night. The last two versions of New Orleans basketball have played unequivocally shameful defense. There have been a lot of explanations thrown […]
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Is Small Forward Really a Problem for the Pelicans?
You’d think the answer from New Orleans Pelicans fans would be a resounding YES. With the likes of Luke Babbitt, John Salmons, Darius Miller, et al, it’s understandable there’s concern. But the answer isn’t that easy. In fact it’s rather complicated. The answer could simply be: No it isn’t a problem Monty Williams is expected […]
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Is Anthony Davis on the Verge of Becoming a Full-Fledged Superstar?
This is Season Preview week on Bourbon Street Shots, and while the focus will be on the team as a whole, the answer to the question above will likely determine how big of a jump the Pelicans make in the Western Conference. Quite simply, NBA superstars only miss the playoffs in very rare situations. Kobe Bryant […]
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Pelicans Media Day Shenanigans
Me and Ryan Anderson doing a comedy show? A Darius Miller radio station? A stare down with Monty Williams? All of it here: http://youtu.be/5geaU7G02Ug?list=UUglCbjNV1TeBpHW03Rpv9hQ New episodes of the Trew 2 the Game podcast every Tuesday right here. Follow Trew 2 the Game on Twitter. Special thanks to Darrell Rollo for putting the video together!
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A Most Intriguing Second Unit
Since Monty Williams has been here, we have seen thousands of minutes without a single starter on the court. Usually, at the end of the first quarter or the beginning of the second, Monty likes to make wholesale changes and put all five reserves on the court together. Unlike most coaches, Williams doesn’t stagger his […]
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Pelicans Media Day Recap, Observations
The Pelicans hosted their media day from 1-330 at the practice facility. This was my first Media Day, but I was accompanied by Dru, who helped guide me around, and Trew, who destroyed Luke Babbitt’s dreams of becoming a giraffe. It was a simultaneously fun and informative experience- just about each player spent time in […]
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A Critical Time for Austin Rivers
With the New Orleans Pelicans roster pretty much set, the onset of training camp and preseason is key Monty Williams to get an idea of the rotation he plans to use. Players will have an opportunity to edge out one another for limited minutes. And there is no one on the Pelicans who needs a […]
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Average Guards Galore
It’s that time! Training Camp is around the corner. The Pelicans are about to embark on another rough and tumble slog through a Western Conference that has more titans than Godzilla, Pacific Rim, Destiny, and Mecha Anime combined. The Pelicans arrive on the scene with their own trio of giants in Asik, Davis and Anderson that should […]
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Pelicans “Brave New Court” Redesign Wish List
When Grantland’s Zach Lowe revealed earlier this month in his court design power rankings that our New Orleans Pelicans were embarking on an ambitious redesign of the basketball court, the ears of Crescent City Basketball fans perked up. His words: The Pelicans have a brave proposed court redesign that might be the league’s boldest, but they […]
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The New Orleans Pelicans’ Most Intriguing Squadron
The New Orleans Pelicans’ addition of center Omer Asik answers a question that had no clear answer last season – who to start at center. A more uncertain question, however, is how minutes and rotations will be managed among the Pelicans’ three-headed front court monster of Asik, Ryan Anderson, and Anthony Davis. The default assumption is that two […]
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Tanking and Conferences
I love the game of basketball – but there are three things that bother me about the current NBA setup. The last 2 minutes of a basketball game are too friggin’ long. Egregious tanking. Using conferences to determine the 16 teams is silly when one conference can have so many superior teams. The first issue can […]
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Anthony Davis and His Next Contract With the New Orleans Pelicans
(A special thanks to Jason Calmes in this article for his fact-checking and infinite wisdom. Also, a large shout out to one of our favorite podcast guests and salary cap guru’s Larry Coon.) While the drama of free agency is fun for most, it is nerve-racking for fans of that team whose star player is […]
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Why The New Orleans Pelicans Shouldn’t Play Transition Basketball
It isn’t a question of pace but of getting out in transition is something Mason pointed out to me on twitter the other day. I was saying that I think the New Orleans Pelicans will play with a slower pace because of the Omer Asik trade, but Mason was right: Transition is the correct word […]
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Farewell to a True Pelican, Jason Smith
Saying goodbye is never easy, especially when you’re doing so to the longest tenured player from your favorite team. Jason Smith has given us so much on and off the court that it’s going to be hard to see him in anything besides a New Orleans Pelicans jersey, but especially one that says Knicks. When Smith […]
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New Orleans Pelicans Acquire Omer Asik in Trade
The New Orleans Pelicans acquired Omer Asik today in a trade. The trade was rumored in June prior to the 2014 draft, but the trade could not happen until today for a few reasons, explained below. The Pelicans also acquired Omri Casspi. Both Asik and Casspi came from the Houston Rockets. Following are the deal […]
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What does Lebron’s return to Cleveland mean for small markets?
For the past five years a growing sentiment around the professional basketball world has been the neglect of small market basketball franchises. This has been pushed mostly through the superstar movements around the league. When Lebron decided to leave Cleveland many fretted that it was only a matter of time that others followed. To some […]
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LeBron’s move to Cleveland allows Dell Demps to get creative with Asik trade
What a day, huh? As soon as LeBron announced his decision that he would be heading back to Cleveland, the NBA free agency period quickly kicked into overdrive. Among the flurry of deals to take place this afternoon was the announcement of a trade between the Cavaliers and Pelicans that sent veteran small forward Alonzo Gee to New […]
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Player Profiles- Rapid Fire
Free agency is still in limbo as Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James finalize their free agent decisions, and until dominoes start falling, the Pelicans may not be able to make many moves. While we’re in a holding pattern, I thought it would be a good time to do short reports of some of our players- who they were/have […]
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Next Year’s Playoff Newcomer
Bourbon Street Shots welcomes Graham McQueen, who has written this guest piece for the site. Enjoy! The Pelicans are a franchise in flux. A little over a year removed from the official change of the New Orleans Hornets to the New Orleans Pelicans, the city is still feeling the effects of the rebrand. As part of […]