I see y’all still on the Melli situation, right? Lol have fun with that one fellas.
I see y’all still on the Melli situation, right? Lol have fun with that one fellas.
Yea I completely agree! Many of them had to save some energy for offense which is expected as these guys become better conditioned. Ingram is another I expect to really need the conditioning since he basically wasn’t able to walk fast or even shoot a ball until very recently. He was told to do literally nothing from last season to just recently. He looks much better then I expected this soon but I expect his defense to get more and more aggressive as his legs get under him. I think Lonzo is another to expect some progression from as the season gets going. His ankle stopped him from lots of leg work for a few months but one positive is he was able to develop his shot.
I don’t see where he said this. He simply said he’s not just a casual fan because he has been here since 2011. He got attacked for having an opinion by not being a huge fan of Melli and wishing we had Mirotic who he thought fits great.. Not other way around. I agree he’s not just some casual fan just because he doesn’t post 10 times a day. I don’t agree with him but didn’t attack him for an opinion.
Right, the commentators were even surprised at his jumper, it’s only getting better as the season matures. Another thing is once Zo really gets to know everybody’s spots, he’s going to be dangerous. Obviously they took it easy to avoid any injuries, but man you gotta be excited seeing how well they all played with every little practice as a unit.
I'm really looking forward to this season.
Jumpman.@ZionWilliamson | #WBD pic.twitter.com/IPowPfa9a5
— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) October 8, 2019
Yea that starting unit is going to be so much fun to watch. I think the bench will be very exciting as well in its own way. The starting group just compliments each other so well with every player having special skill sets that are different from the guy next to him. They all have a special role in the starting lineup. I’m also excited to see some potential lineups with Zion at the 5 and Ingram at the 4 while bringing in another guard like NAW/Reddick/Hart in place of Favors to play with Jrue and Ball. Going to be a very fun season!
Exactly, appreciate the logic. I thought as a basketball forum, we’re entitled to talk all-things-basketball as guys usually do, including voicing an unfavorable opinion. Geez.
I used to see people say some wild stuff, especially regarding trade scenarios but who man I to claim that they’re not a real fan just because of that? Anyway, y’all be cool. Shoutout to Melli, hope he proves me wrong.
I've heard this team is "interesting" about 10xs tonight alone.
These "analyst" really dont know what to make of this team. Tonight only furthered the confusion.
They need the Pelicans to look bad to they can relax. LOL :hihi:
Haha yea don’t let that scare you away! Most here understand others opinions especially yours which has nothing remotely wrong with it especially compared to some of the things said here. Melli still has lot to prove to me but after watching his film and what he has done so far I have seen along with the ringing endorsements from coaches and teammates I like what we got. More athletic and better passing version of Mirotic imo.
https://youtu.be/WXkdgtK_1jA
Nico Melli highlights
Advanced Stats from tonight -
— Shamit Dua (@FearTheBrown) October 8, 2019
Pace: 116.5
ORTG: 114.7
DRTG: 93.2
ORB%: 33.3%
Obviously it's only a single pre-season game.I am not trying to argue that these stats are going to represent the full year. Not for a moment. They won't.
But, if you were to average these stats for an entire season you would have:
- The fastest pace in NBA history
- A slightly above league average offense
- The best defensive rating in NBA history
- The 18th best offensive rebounding season in NBA history
Obviously that is not going to happen :hihi: but still, tells you how much we dominated ATL tonight
Analysts absolutely love the Pelicans :hihi:
Not sure what analysts you're talking about. Maybe the terrible ones that ESPN hires or whatever.
But John Hollinger (inventor of PER) loves us, Jacob Goldstein (inventor of PIPM) likes us a lot, Brian Schroeder (prominent draft analyst) loves us, Bryan Toporek and Mort Jenson from bballwriters have us as a top 5 League Pass team that could potential make the playoffs, Cole Zwicker thinks we're an outside playoff team with one of the top 3 young cores in the NBA, etc etc etc.
Analytics people love Zion, they love Jrue, they love Kenrich, they love Favors, etc, ergo, they love us.
#WontBowDown pic.twitter.com/8DTcxtBPAp
— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) October 8, 2019
Trae Young was 1-6 from deep on 40% shooting. And that includes some sneaky minutes against backups. Lonzo/Jrue bothered him on many possessions.
BI shot 4 threes in 23 minutes and was 50%. Exactly what I expect and dont see that changing when the real bullets start.
you are more than entitled to your opinion, and no matter the response to it, nobody can take it away from you.... now with that said, despite a very mediocre shooting night, Melli showed what a valuable addition he will be to this team... I would be shocked if his shot doesn't fall with much more consistency soon and I very much expect him to earn your respect before too long....
I don't want to get too caught up in preseason or anything, but the Pels are winning 74 games this season
One thing Gentry will need to figure out is ballhandlers on the second unit. Moore-Redick-Hart won't work. Nobody in that lineup can initiate offense. One option would be to do a quick substitution of one of those guys in at like the 8 minute or 6 minute mark, then run the early substitute back out at around 2 minutes to lead the second unit. Another would be to have Redick in place of Ingram or Zo in the starting lineup. Another would be to just let NAW be the backup point guard.
I wish Kenrich could and would shoot. He is otherwise a really nice player, but there were way too many times tonight the ball swung to him as a wide open player from the wing, he wouldn't take the 3, he would take a couple dribbles in and try to pass or something, and it mostly led to turnovers or bad offense. To a lesser extent Ingram and Melli did this, too, but they mostly took the 3s. These may or may not go down, but if you don't take that shot when you are wide open, it kills the offense.
I completely agree, and I tend towards the solution of just letting NAW be the backup point. Give him the majority of Frank/Moore minutes. He has a wider skillset, is taller and longer than both of them, and is earlier in his career. Moore's contract ends after this year, why invest heavy minutes into him instead of NAW?
Are we having fun yet?
Postgame interview:
16 points
— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) October 8, 2019
7 rebounds
3 steals
3 assists
Zion on his @NBA preseason debut #WontBowDown pic.twitter.com/3B0NfkKoRb
Are you glad that you got the chance in your first game to show off other skills outside of dunking?
Zion: ''Oh yeah, for sure, I don't think just dunking would have got me here, I think I have to be somewhat of a good basketball player to get here so whenever I get a chance to showcase my abilities, I try.''
Difference in physicality from college:
Zion: ''It is a little bit different, people are much clos- uh, much stronger so you know, you have to find more skilled ways to score but I feel like with my size that's not going to be much of a big adjustment. I feel like I'll adjust very well with that.''
Thoughts about pace
Zion: ''You know coach Gentry, all he talks about is fast pace and running, so whenever I get that chance, I go.''
ZION is going to be so good. OMG
NAW is really really consistent. Have you seen a game where NAW wasn’t impressive? I haven’t.
NAW looks like the steal of the draft. I can’t see any flaw in NAW
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Just some interesting tweets about the game by some none-Pelicans writers/analysts/voices
The dunk was crazy but boy did I really like that action the Pelicans ran. Pistol type action into a dribble handoff to Zion. Good misdirection/combination of actions. https://t.co/w4YtudleO0
— Steve Jones Jr. (@stevejones20) October 7, 2019
Hard to envision a better set for Zion. https://t.co/MFXVCKdoWc
— TS% Eliot (@Cosmis) October 8, 2019
Lonzo Ball's shot looks so much better. Mid-30s totally in play this year and a credit to Fred Vinson @CoachFVinson for the work he's put in this summer.
— Ben Taylor (@ElGee35) October 8, 2019
I think what's most exciting about Zion is not just his huge skillset, and the fact that it's entirely realistic that he'll be a positive impact player in his rookie year, but that there's still room for him to improve.
If someone came into the league this good, but this seemed to be their ceiling, and everything was as good as it was gonna get, that would still be a good player but it wouldn't thrill me quite as much.
But Zion has real touch around the rim, and was a better shooter in college than people seem to think. He has a solid handle for a guy of his size, but it's not perfect and he has room to tighten it up: and we've seen clips from practice and training camp that imply he's doing that. He has fantastic footwork and balance, but he gambles a bit too much on defense which can lead to him being out of position every now and again, but he has the IQ and floor reading ability to improve there. He's an excellent rebounder, but he could do with improving his box out fundamentals a little. He's a solid passer with plus vision, but hasn't got a huge amount of experience running an offense in the half court, and has room to improve there as a decision maker.
None of these are huge flaws, and he's good enough at everything he does to be a strong player even without fixing or improving any of these things and just working on what he's already great at. But his motor runs so high and he seems to really love the game, so you've gotta imagine he's going to improve in those areas too. If he does?
It's over for the NBA :hihi:
Just preseason but man, that was impressive Zion is very special,his quickness and size is so unique reminds me of a smaller, faster Shaq.Lonzo and Zion already showing great chemistry.Jrue is the perfect leader for this team so underrated,Ingram still likes to ISO and it's effective but I'd like him to be more decisive and not hold the ball too long and I like he's shooting 3's Melli is a good fit I see a very high IQ there, NAW looks special what a steal,Reddick is money I always liked him This team is deep I see them fighting for that 8th playoff spot.
My post game reactions:
First and foremost, I think we will have to get use to something. I think our team brings some type of energy to games where we are going to see a teams highest intensity basketball even for a preseason game. The pace we play with. The intention of playing with perfection that this team has isn’t normal for preseason basketball. I’ve watched ball all my life, this looks different. Last night, that wasn’t the typical preseason basketball game.
Zion: Positives: Dude is about to be a problem. A weapon that’s only in its formative stages. That weakside action rolling play looks unguardable and if you notice, so many people are open on that play. The funny thing is, many players...superstars, can not pull off that play multiple times in a game. It’s like a catch a team off guard play that may happen every once in a while. His offensive awareness for this to be his first game is a rookie is ahead of the curve.
Negatives:
The play and intensity of the pro game and how the Hawks tried from where I was sitting to put him in constant read and reaction plays likely is too fast for him right now. He doesn’t have the veteran awareness right now to know exactly where to stand to be effective. Apart of me also feels like he’s paying his rookie dues right now and just trying not to get in the way. This is really the only part of his game as a rookie I’m waiting to click because once his awareness rises and his motor surpasses the speed of this intense pro game, it’s curtains.
NAW: I know I dissed Griff about dealing the pick, but I’ll be the first to stand up and say what a find. He has all the tools and the speed to be whatever his goal is to be in the NBA and I’m sure it’s super high. Again, he’s a rookie doing this against imo an abnormal preseason intense game. Imagine years of experience under his belt.
ZO: If can knockdown the 3 like he did last night, that’s enough for me. He plays intense defense. He pushes the pace...and last nights pace was alarming...and I get the feeling you no longer can leave him open. If he hits his 3 this year...he’s about to ball out - yes pun.
BI: He was impressive too. BI is going be the midrange game of our team. The pull up jumper and occasional bad shot here and there I won’t mind because of the pace we play with. But to be off for months rehabbing and to jump into the pace of last night and still look like he never left is a testament to his game. This is the Ingram I want to see all season.
Jrue: Yes...still the best player on the floor. Awareness off the charts. Our rookies should be counting their blessings they were drafted to a team with Jrue. In the other thread I mentioned how I could tell what was going on in practice. I still feel that way...but in the intense game like this was...its almost like Jrue had to remind folks what shrewd And savvy looks like.
Okafor: Gentry immediately pulled Favors for Ok who was playing like the best big on the floor at times. The pace might have been too fast for Favors right now in his condition but I’m glad Ok stepped up. I won’t get too gassed up...just like on all these performances and reactions. But he seems to be in the best shape of his life.
Meli/JJ: Oh we have shooters. Melis a pro and he does understand this game. He’s in a situation where he might have to for sure connect percentage wise on his 3s or scrape to find the floor, but I feel good about him as a shooter on this squad just based on the proper spacing he provides. JJ is JJ. He’s going to have games like this and he’s going to have “JJ is on fire from the outside!” games. We shot 45 threes and JJ only took 2. That’s a bright sign.
this was a good fast pace game...i think we all saw what gentry rotations will be and it will not have 3 rookies in it......hayes is going to the g-league.....naw may push frank out of a spot if his good play is consistent in the preseason.......im glad okafor drop down to 250 and came in shape to run in the offense because i like his inside scoring and rebounding...
i dont like the houston defense we played last night where bigs were rolling to the rim open and guards were picking them up giving up easy points...if we are a top 5 offensive team and we play decent defense then that should get us into the playoffs.......after the let down we had last season,,look like we will bounce back with a playoff seed......
Defense will be leaky for awhile. Too many new pieces. But when they do put it all together, it’s going to be glorious. You can already see the potential with the individual defenses from several guys. As long as they play with energy and effort, they’ll be fine overall on D.
We have a lot of potential and a wide squad. It will only get better, some time is needed. It was nice game to watch.
Fully convinced that NAW could be rookie of the year if we didn’t have Lonzo ahead of him. Put him on any of those terrible sides where he is the guy and it would not surprise me one bit.
On Favors- do not force him back until he is ready. There really isn’t much of a need with the amount of talent that we have and time is on our side. I don’t want an unnecessary hamstring injury.
Also, I like Melli a lot. He just needs to adjust to the NBA range and he will be a steal.
Imagine when
Jrue plays 30mpg,
Lonzo 25-28mpg
Ingram 30mpg
Zion 25-35mp
Favors 25-28mpg
Bench:
Okafor: 15-18mpg
Melli: 20mpg
Redick: 20mpg
NAW: 16-20mpg (definitely expect this if he can truly run the point)
Moore: ?
Frank: ?
Kenrich: ? 15mpg?
Hayes: ??
How do y’all think minutes will be distributed?
I think Gentry should cut minutes down for starters similar to GSW did... keep players really healthy rested fresh etc. I think we have the depth to do this.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Was there in person. Wow. This is going to be fun.
Does anyone else feel like Hart is redundant?
Just looked at the box score. Very impressed with how evenly the points are spread throughout the side.
i cant remember this ever happening before watching basketball but zion just takes my breath away with his explosiveness and control in the air its constant "how did he do that?" i am so excited to watch his progress.
he is a very clever player and obviously has skills to execute. I really liked what I saw.
Zion moves in a way the league hasn't seen since Lebron was in his first stint in Cleveland.
Nobody other than Lebron has had that same combination of size, power, athleticism, speed, etc etc. Some people have had one or two of those things but not all. That massive dunk Zion had over Damian Jones in this game reminded me of a Westbrook's best dunks, except if Westbrook was 4 inches taller and 80lbs heavier and doing it with his off-hand.
Which is bonkers to consider.