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The V in Thanksgiving
I thought about writing this post at the start of the season, but it didn’t feel right, so I waited. I’m not driven or moved by arbitrary deadlines. Especially not with this. A holiday celebrating food, generosity, and history in part using sports is right. Yeah. I want to express my deep gratitude and appreciation […]
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Thoughts on Injuries, Rotation, Roster Moves
Some thoughts on the return of injured players. Frank Jackson could return in the coming weeks, with a 3-4 month window reported on September 1. Jackson was unlikely to be slated for meaningful minutes, but being an insurance policy beyond Charles Cooke could help add confidence to a move to acquire a big. Alexis Ajinca […]
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Coming to Terms with Rondo
Here is how I overcame my initial concerns with the Rondo signing to view him favorably now. When the New Orleans Pelicans signed Rajon Rondo, I was a bit stunned. I was not stunned because of the magnitude of the move or anything like that. I was stunned because I, frankly, had fairly uniform negative […]
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Can the Pelicans Reduce Their Turnovers?
This post first appeared in an abbreviated form on Twitter @BourbonStShots Sunday morning. Follow for more. The short of it: I don’t see a problem, a reduction would be nice, and a slight reduction in some bad behavior should be sought, but I’d take an increase in turnovers if they came the right way. Let’s […]
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Considering Trading For Bledsoe
If Bledsoe is truly available and is open to coming to the New Orleans Pelicans, they can not play meek and hedge their bets, not in an NBA where stars are attracting stars and they are in a favorable initial position. Bledsoe may not be an ideal fit, but the Pelicans may be in a […]
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Sprinkling in Some Long 2’s
Wednesday night in Memphis, the Pelicans looked good in the first quarter, and things unraveled to start the second. The game was about even until a Memphis run in the third, and the Pelicans were really never close again. There were several things going well for New Orleans throughout the game: Rebounding, getting to the […]
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42 Sense: Season Ahead
The New Orleans Pelicans tip off the season tonight against the Memphis Grizzlies. At long last, we find the Pelicans in a key season. Each season you’ve heard (elsewhere) how this is make or break for some reason or another. This time I’m telling you: this one is a watershed season. As noted in the […]
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42 Sense: Season Behind
In advance of the New Orleans Pelicans kicking off the 2017-2018 Season against the Memphis Grizzlies on October 18th, I’m going to share some thoughts on several areas of interest. To start with, we need to look at how we got here. Business The Pelicans sit among the smallest markets in the NBA by every […]
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Change Change Change
It’s been quite the interesting offseason for the New Orleans Pelicans, at least from where I sit. The team’s lone significant move was to sign Jrue Holiday to a large deal. Combining that with other contracts on the books, even extended into the pre-offseason, the rest of the team’s moves have been Out: Tim Frazier, […]
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Remembering Graham McQueen
Sometimes this non-job is fun. Sometimes it’s a chore. Sometimes you have to do something no one could ever pay you enough to do . . . which is where the no money thing really kind of gets you twice. It’s been a little over a day since we lost one of our own: Graham […]
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Pelicans, Rajon Rondo Agree To Contract
The New Orleans Pelicans have reportedly agreed to a deal with 11-year veteran point guard Rajon Rondo. History, Play, Fit Rajon Pierre Rondo, from Louisville, played at Kentucky for 2 seasons before being drafted by the Suns and traded to the Celtics. He signed his first contract with the Celtics and was part of their […]
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The Pelicans’ Glass Salary Ceiling
The New Orleans Pelicans have been slow in Free Agency. They’ve re-signed Jrue Holiday, signed their lone draft pick Frank Jackson, and brought back Darius Miller on a deal for camp. The latter two are likely for the minimum, and Miller’s deal may be completely unguaranteed. I’ll effectively ignore his specific contract. Fans and writers […]
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Leveraging a Sign and Trade of Dante Cunningham
The New Orleans Pelicans have not acquired a new player other than Darius Miller, likely on a minimum deal. Part of this is the slower pace of the offseason, and part of it is the Pelicans’ lack of assets while hunting for a certain kind of player of value. I wrote about nonguaranteed contracts last […]
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Longer Hours
The New Orleans Pelicans made their first and only move of the 2017 NBA offseason in the initial hours of the moratorium, and things have been silent since. The Pelicans are not alone in this, as the number of transactions across the NBA is lower than last offseason. What’s the hold up? Around the NBA, […]
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The Power of Nothing
The New Orleans Pelicans have made just one significant move this offseason, and that is signing Jrue Holiday to a 5-year deal. There needs to be more to help to shore up the playoff chances for the team, and to make a good show to help keep the stars they have and potentially entice another […]
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Jrue Holiday Signs 5-Year Deal With Pelicans
The New Orleans Pelicans signed Jrue Holiday to a 5-year deal. The fifth year is a player option, and the deal is worth between $126m and $150m total, depending on incentives being met. Holiday just turned 27, is a one-time All-Star, and has 8 years of service in the NBA. He was drafted 17th overall, […]
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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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Pelicans Scoop: Drafting and D-League
Jason, Jake, Michael and Mason discuss the Draft and the team’s upcoming D-League, soon to be G-League, franchise. 1. Do you want a late first, and for what? Jake Madison: If they give up this year’s second round pick and next year’s, sure why not? The quality of players is going to be higher at […]