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Navigating Negotiations
The New Orleans Pelicans and Jrue Holiday are engaged in public and private negotiations on Jrue’s next contract. Negotiations are a game, which means they are often improperly analyzed, particularly in a market that is not free and inefficient. Let’s look at this negotiation and negotiations in more generality to see what we can learn, […]
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Processing the Pelicans Process
Last season I spent some time early on pondering just what Dell Demps meant when he said the year would be about the process for the New Orleans Pelicans. I thought. I thought and thought and thought. I watched the games, looked at the play, checked the data and the stats, and I thought. Then, […]
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Passing and The Two-Man Game
The New Orleans Pelicans is a team whose core is zagging when the NBA as a whole is zigging. We saw the Grizzlies and, to some extent, the Pacers have success with this kind of model. Those teams, however, never reached the promised land or even competed in a championship series. That is not to […]
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2017-Finals-Inspired Thoughts for the Pelicans
The New Orleans Pelicans, like 27 other teams, are watching the 2017 NBA Finals from the comfort of their living rooms, literally or figuratively. The Finals are in many ways a repeat of the last 2 seasons. In an age where parity is almost achieved, other than the super teams, realistic expectations of titles dwindle, […]
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Let ’em Have It?
The New Orleans Pelicans are part of the 2017 NBA Draft Lottery this year, and they keep their pick if they end up with one of the top 3 selections. If not, the pick goes to Sacramento. Convention wisdom says that we should all hope the Pelicans end up with the top-3 pick. The pros […]
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Progress Towards an Identity
I wrote a while back that the Pelicans were in dire need of an identity. This idea resonated with many, and it was of course lampooned by those who are just slower to process the obvious who came around the same point a year later. Well, here we are a year after that, and identity […]
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Pelicans Prepare for a Big Choice
The New Orleans Pelicans have been under the gun since it was clear that Anthony Davis was going to be what was hoped prior to the 2012 NBA Draft. The first attempts to build a roster showed promise, but they fizzled from a combination of bad luck and risk. New hope emerged for a Davis-filled […]
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The Wisdom of Solomon?
When the New Orleans Pelicans signed Solomon Hill, I told myself: Read up. When I had time to read up, I told myself: This guy is going to do most of his work off the box score. When I watched the games for those off-the-box things: I didn’t see them. Every team has its under-the-microscope […]
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I’ll Die on Boogie Hill
The New Orleans Pelicans acquired DeMarcus Cousins in a trade, and now I’ve had some time to think about it. There’s been a good deal of flap about the trade just because of its nature, but the team’s up-and-down record since then along with how much Cousins played in those wins has added flappiness to […]
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Casspi and the Cap
The New Orleans Pelicans traded for DeMarcus Cousins, and many minds were lost. As detailed in the post here once the trade was confirmed to us, Everything changes. Everything. It’s a new team, led by Davis, Cousins, and Holiday, in that order. Everything else is fodder. The Cousins acquisition was seismic, and with that comes […]
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New Orleans Pelicans Trade for DeMarcus Cousins
The New Orleans Pelicans will land DeMarcus Cousins in trade, per multiple reports came out after the conclusion of the 2017 NBA All-Star Game. Reports of discussions built before and during the game. This will be fleshed out in the coming days, but here’s the primer. The Trade New Orleans Pelicans Receive: DeMarcus Cousins Omri […]
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Civil Disobedience
Don’t hate the media; become the media. — Jello Biafra I’ve written a few very personal pieces on this site over the years. Long-time readers and friends will recall my David West Lament, my message to the nay-sayers, and more. Mostly you know me for my old news summaries, boring coverage of laws and analysis, […]
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The Injury Inefficiency Efficiency
The New Orleans Pelicans seem to be plagued with injuries. Some Pelicans fans feel like this is a curse of some sort. Some writers and even employees and players have mentioned, likely in jest and in frustration. The data backs up that the fans are not wrong about the effect of the injuries and which […]
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Are You Ready for Your Solo?
Every team in the NBA as the “polarizing move du jour,” and for the Pelicans, Solomon Hill has given Omer Asik some breathing room. It’s not that either player is an issue in themselves, but the combination of their play, team style, the contract, and the various imaginings of the person judging (with some imaginings […]
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Wasted Seasons?
I keep hearing the term “wasted” season, and it annoys me. Rather than just stew over here, I wanted to try to add some clarity to all sides of the manufactured debate. If one is primarily interested in winning a title this year, the performance this season is going to leave you completely and unambiguously […]
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Thanksgiving Scoop
You’ll have to see how the answers turn out, but here are some upward-pointing questions in advance of Thanksgiving. 1. Holiday is back. Are the New Orleans Pelicans now equipped to win “today” against at least half of the NBA a 0.500 or better rate? How about with Evans coming back? 42: I think that’s […]
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Late Early Observations
The New Orleans Pelicans played 12 games without Holiday and 1 game with him. It’s as good a time as any to look at what we’ve been looking at. Davis is not only one of the best players in the NBA, he’s on a mission to prove it. His good performances have, of course, been […]
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Issues of Trust
I’ve spent some time thinking about just has gone wrong with this team that was controllable. Every team makes mistakes. Bad luck aside, I wanted to come up with an answer, and not just some early bad signing. I wanted the real root of the issue. These people are not incompetent. They can be wrong, […]
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Handling The Pressure
The New Orleans Pelicans, for the first time in a long time . . . a very long time . . . quit last night. The team will deny it. The players will deny it. The organization will deny it. A number of writers and fans will deny it or ignore it to grind irrelevant […]
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A Small Defense of the Defense
I am among no small number of people discussing the defense of the New Orleans Pelicans. I have said some good things and bad. Jake has said the same here and on his Locked On Pelicans podcast (which you need to check out). McNamara has said more bad than good, while Ryan seems ok with […]