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Are The Pelicans Really After Kyle Lowry?
The draft is almost upon us with free agency soon to follow. As the clock winds down towards July 29th, rumors from every corner of the internet flood the news waves. I want to talk about two particular rumors that have been reported by several major outlets and seem to be related. First, the Pelicans […]
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Interview with Pelicans’ Draft Prospect – Austin Reaves
Austin Reaves is a 6’5” guard who played for the Oklahoma Sooners. Averaging 18.3 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 4.6 assists, Reaves shined his senior year as a versatile initiator and playmaker. Reaves was able to not only score from all over the court, but his playmaking made him a dangerous threat creating for others. One […]
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The Pelicans Are Improving On Defense
Photo Cred: Ashley Amoss/Pelicans Going into the season, one of my biggest questions around the Pelicans was if they could put forth a sustainable defense around Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram. Stan Van Gundy, Steven Adams, and Eric Bledsoe were all brought in to steady the defense around the Pelicans’ undisciplined young core. However, the […]
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Rebuilding Mistakes Part 1: When Teams Just Can’t Let Go
Winning in the NBA is hard. There are no guaranteed paths to sustainable winning or a championship, but there are many pitfalls along the way that make the task even more difficult. This series will examine common mistakes made by teams during their rebuilding phase. NBA history is littered with failed rebuilds so one doesn’t […]
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TRADES TRADES TRADES
Everybody get in here! Trade season has begun. This past week we received our first dose of major Pelicans trade news – the Pelicans are shopping around Lonzo Ball, JJ Redick, and Eric Bledsoe. They might even be shopping much more! This should not be surprising for a team which has started 7-11 despite having […]
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The Three Biggest Questions The Pelicans Face This Season
We made it. The Pelicans open their season tonight against the Tampa Bay Raptors and it’s hard to believe we are finally here. After a complete overhaul during the off-season which left Zion Williamson as the longest tenured Pelicans player, the team has ushered in a new era which revolves around Zion and Brandon Ingram […]
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Your Guide To The Coaching Rumors
Tyronn Lue Ty Lue has been associated with the Pelicans before Alvin Gentry was even fired. With reports indicating the Pelicans had their eye on Lue since the 13 game losing streak in December, Lue should be the presumptive favorite. But are the Pelicans Lue’s favorite? Since Alvin Gentry was fired, multiple sources have maintained […]
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It’s Time To Slow Things Down
As I watch the Portland Trailblazers get hammered by the first seeded Lakers on national TV, I can’t help but think how far away the Pelicans are from competing. The NBA hiatus allowed a Blazers team, which had reached the Western Conference Finals the year prior, to get healthy and steal the 8th seed from […]
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What Is The Best Way To Draft?
Data driven deep dive into draft strategy.
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A Small Win for the Pelicans at the Deadline
The 2020 NBA trade deadline came and went and the Pelicans did not participate in a single transaction. You maybe wonder, how do the Pelicans “win” if they didn’t do anything? Well sometimes the actions of other teams just create fortunate situations for your team. During this deadline, the free agency market for Derrick Favors […]
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Connection Vs. Creation
In October, I wrote in detail about Lonzo Ball and his potential role on the Pelicans. While my main point of contention was around the antiquated positional label, “Point Guard”, I touched briefly upon how I view playmakers in two different categories: Connectors and Creators. I want to expand upon this idea a bit and […]
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Brandon Ingram’s Max Contract
It’s officially 2020 and by now it is amply clear that Brandon Ingram is in line for a maximum contract in July. The Pelicans and Ingram had an opportunity to agree to an extension earlier this summer, and many of his draft mates did indeed agree to high value deals. However, with Ingram working his […]
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Structuring The Al Horford Deal
Introduction: At this point there is enough smoke around the Pelicans and Al Horford that this warrants a post. The purpose of this post is to flesh out potential structures for the Al Horford deal. I wish I had the time to make this witty or tell a compelling story about how signing Horford symbolizes […]
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Why David Griffin Is Serious About Keeping Anthony Davis
Imagine you have a team with an all-star caliber guard in his prime, a lottery pick in the draft, a couple intriguing young players, and a fair amount of cap space. Now imagine you were presented with the opportunity to acquire Anthony Davis at only the cost of opportunity. Would you go for it? Most […]
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Building Gayle Benson
Intro The moment Anthony Davis made his desires for greener pastures known to management, Dell Demps was on borrowed time. Seven years of team building came crashing down with a single WOJbomb. But even before Rich Paul and Davis set their plan in motion, there were rumbles in local media circles that owner Gayle Benson […]
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The Scarlet Agency: How The Pelicans Have Gained Control of The Narrative
It was late Friday night when the bombshells started dropping. Shams, then Woj, then Shams, then Woj again. Outside of head coach Alvin Gentry being thrust into media scrums due to league obligated duties, the Pelicans organization in large part remained quiet this whole week. They watched patiently as Davis’s representation, Rich Paul, galavanted with […]
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Catching The Next Wave
NBA trades are like waves. Each team hopes to catch the biggest one and they are largely unpredictable. I’ve argued all season that the Pelicans go out and catch the biggest wave they can, but sometimes the trade winds don’t blow the right way and an opportunity doesn’t materialize. For example, it is entirely possible […]
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The Beal Deal
(This article is a collaboration between Mason, Shamit, and 42.) An important part of this season, and retaining Anthony Davis for at least another season, is improving the roster. Bradley Beal arguably has the highest combination of acquirability, skill mix needed by this team, and tradability to other teams in the future. Here is a […]
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Dissecting the Defense
Stop me if you have heard this before – the Pelicans have a lackluster defense. If you follow me on Twitter, you’ve certainly heard the bemoaning for weeks. If you don’t, you maybe noticed the Clippers waltz into the Smoothie King Center and leave shooting almost 60% from the floor. That’s nuts. The Pelicans […]
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Chasing Big
Intro The Pelicans have put together perhaps the most productive 3 big rotation the league has seen in a long time. The sheer versatility of the trio poses an interesting challenge for opposing defenses who simply are not equipped to handle all three. When all three have been healthy that has certainly been the case, […]