Kiss my ass, COVID-19. It’s Pelicans Day


This year has sucked.

I don’t need to recap 2020 to make my point. You already know everything about it.

I’m tired. You’re tired. We’re all tired.

What I did not expect to happen in the middle of all this shit is actually meaningful professional sports games being able to take place. There are zero cases of COVID-19 inside the NBA bubble at the Walt Disney World resorts in Orlando and the NEW ORLEANS PELICANS ARE BACK, BABY!

It truly is a miracle because it damn near looks as if we won’t be able to have any football in the fall and Major League Baseball has started back up but there have been issues with players coming down with COVID-19 there.

I don’t give a shit if there are players around the league opting out the remainder of the season (although I respect and support their decisions) or that there are no fans in the stands. This competition is real and something to root for. There will always be an asterisk on this season. It doesn’t matter. The Pelicans were built to run and should take every opportunity to be aggressive and set the stage for the legacy of Zion Williamson now.

Zionmania

Based on talent alone, an Anthony Davis and LeBron James pairing should have everyone electrified. I swear to God. It feels like no one gives a damn. No one is talking about it like the way Rachel Nichols and everyone at The Jump (a.k.a The Fox and Friends of Lakers MAGA) were pumping it back when the world was only slightly more normal. They’ll probably still win the championship. Or maybe the Clippers will. Whatever the case, their inevitable or potential destiny feels boring.

Having only a taste of the takeover energy of Zion is like eating one loaded potato skin when they pass around the appetizers at Texas Roadhouse while waiting on your ribeye. You’re hungry and ready to fight while “Dirt On My Boots” by Jon Pardi blares in the background, leaving your mind irrational as the room spins.

Zion knows he will be a cultural icon and knows how to sell it. He teased that he has a special social justice message on the back of his jersey. He knows he’s playing tonight despite days of missed practices on leave. It’s not a “game-time decision”. But thanks for selling it. He knows how to set the world on fire. We should follow this kid into the dark. GET SWEPT UP!!!

The team is good without Zion

Look, even if Zion can’t play tonight the team reminded us of one thing during the stretch of undefeated scrimmages without him we already knew before. This team is loaded with talent and compete without Zion.

Brandon Ingram is an All-Star. Don’t forget that. He feels comfortable in both being a teammate and getting the green light.

Also, I saw a team in the scrimmages that was bought in. Yeah, they were scrimmages but rhythm is key and Coach Alvin Gentry looks like he finally has the right orchestra to conduct. Lonzo Ball, equipped with his new jump-shot, seems to be the perfect drummer. E’Twaun Moore and J.J. Redick are weaving and cutting like figure skaters and Jrue Holiday is a wrecking ball. Nicolo Melli isn’t taking an absurd amount of threes but the ones he does take are the result of open opportunities rewarded by efficiency.

Unity

This team is must-see-TV at a time we need it most. Even better, the nation has a front row ticket to a krewe with our local branding every time they wear New Orleans across their chest.

These games are one of the few things we have to rally around right now. We’re lucky they’re even happening. We should be social distancing. Our bubbles should be somewhat small right now. But whether you’ll be watching tonight alone, with family, or with friends. Go ahead and let your freak flag fly and get ABSOLUTELY STUPID for the Bird Boys from the Bayou.

You deserve it. We deserve it.

I’d also like to pay tribute to Amite High Magnet School basketball Coach Ronald Cox who passed away recently after a battle with COVID-19. He was also my Head Varsity Coach at Albany High School in 2004 and 2005 and helped me become the man I am today.

Cox had also been on coaching staffs at Auburn University and Southeastern Louisiana. As a college player, he started at McNeese State alongside NBA Hall-of-Fame guard Joe Dumars.


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