The real reason the Pelicans are not good

We don't run plays.

Gentry has us playing a glorified scrimmage offense. I watched this entire game looking for a play, and we did not run a single one. It was just P&Rs, dribble handoffs, pin downs, and isos. Conversely Phoenix ran a play almost every time down. You guys remember in 2015 when Pondexter was key. He was getting a healthy diet of corner 3s. He was able to get those shots because we ran plays for him to get them. I haven't looked at any shooting charts but based on eye test, our players are shooting from all over the place. There aren't any plays being ran to get them shots in there sweet spots. Almost half the shots we take are tough.

The chemistry would have to be through the roof for Gentry's freelance offense to be successful. No team in the league plays an entire game without running a single play. Imagine an NFL team not calling a single play all game. The receivers never run any routes, just tries to get open. Madness. Plays are there to simplify the game.

This also is hurting our defense. Because we're not running plays, no one is designated to get back. And because we're getting tough shots, it's allowing teams to get out in run with us scrambled. But more importantly, if we dont run plays that means we don't practice plays. So our practices are basically like the summer runs you see on YouTube I guess. Not practicing against plays has us unprepared to play against teams who will run plays that have 2nd and 3rd actions.

Either way we're moving on from Gentry after this year. He's a dinosaur. If we're going to keep him for the rest of the year then he needs to start implementing plays quickly. If not, then we need to bring in someone who will and is willing to coach on a half year deal. Because this freelance crap is completely unprofessional.

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Originally Posted by HoustonPelicans

We don't run plays.

Gentry has us playing a glorified scrimmage offense. I watched this entire game looking for a play, and we did not run a single one. It was just P&Rs, dribble handoffs, pin downs, and isos. Conversely Phoenix ran a play almost every time down. You guys remember in 2015 when Pondexter was key. He was getting a healthy diet of corner 3s. He was able to get those shots because we ran plays for him to get them. I haven't looked at any shooting charts but based on eye test, our players are shooting from all over the place. There aren't any plays being ran to get them shots in there sweet spots. Almost half the shots we take are tough.

The chemistry would have to be through the roof for Gentry's freelance offense to be successful. No team in the league plays an entire game without running a single play. Imagine an NFL team not calling a single play all game. The receivers never run any routes, just tries to get open. Madness. Plays are there to simplify the game.

This also is hurting our defense. Because we're not running plays, no one is designated to get back. And because we're getting tough shots, it's allowing teams to get out in run with us scrambled. But more importantly, if we dont run plays that means we don't practice plays. So our practices are basically like the summer runs you see on YouTube I guess. Not practicing against plays has us unprepared to play against teams who will run plays that have 2nd and 3rd actions.

Either way we're moving on from Gentry after this year. He's a dinosaur. If we're going to keep him for the rest of the year then he needs to start implementing plays quickly. If not, then we need to bring in someone who will and is willing to coach on a half year deal. Because this freelance crap is completely unprofessional.

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Couldn’t agree more. It’s not an NBA style of basketball. In order for them to win, someone has to have a 40 point game and the other team has to shoot bad. That’s not realistic on most nights and the record shows for it.

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Originally Posted by Fedupfan

Couldn’t agree more. It’s not an NBA style of basketball. In order for them to win, someone has to have a 40 point game and the other team has to shoot bad. That’s not realistic on most nights and the record shows for it.

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Yeah its impossible to think we can improve as a team like this. Players will improve individually, sure but not much as a unit outside of chemistry. Teams improve during the season by mastering plays, adding nuances and wrinkles to them. Then adding more plays. Knowing which plays you can run to get for sure buckets, or to exploit matchups. That's how teams grow. Imagine Lonzo in a system. Having a set of plays to run like a QB.

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Originally Posted by HoustonPelicans

Yeah its impossible to think we can improve as a team like this. Players will improve individually, sure but not much as a unit outside of chemistry. Teams improve during the season by mastering plays, adding nuances and wrinkles to them. Then adding more plays. Knowing which plays you can run to get for sure buckets, or to exploit matchups. That's how teams grow. Imagine Lonzo in a system. Having a set of plays to run like a QB.

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I told someone the same thing. Lonzo is a player that thrives on knowing where people are going to be. The guessing game has cost him turnovers and confusion so far. It’s not really fair to him for anyone to judge his game off of playing for Alvin.

They run plays, but the players are given liberty to audible and make adjustments according to the defense. The problem is the team has to rely on either youth or vets that make poor decisions. Which is why Jrue Holiday will never be a point guard.

But they do run plays. Just look at the very first dunk Zion scored against the Hawks that's now being used for a Jordan brand commerical. That was a well executed play, but against a pre season defense.

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Originally Posted by luckyman

They run plays, but the players are given liberty to audible and make adjustments according to the defense. The problem is the team has to rely on either youth or vets that make poor decisions. Which is why Jrue Holiday will never be a point guard.

But they do run plays. Just look at the very first dunk Zion scored against the Hawks that's now being used for a Jordan brand commerical. That was a well executed play, but against a pre season defense.

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I used to think the same that players were given the liberty to audible. But nope, they do not run set plays. They just run actions within the offense. If I'm wrong, I'll accept it. But I did not see one play ran last night and can't remember one being ran all season. Conversely watching other teams, they run plays pretty much the whole game.

That Zion play was just a dribble hand off. It wasn't a real play. Players are smart enough to play off actions, it's just not the most efficient style. Especially when you're playing against teams who are executing properly.

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Originally Posted by HoustonPelicans

I used to think the same that players were given the liberty to audible. But nope, they do not run set plays. They just run actions within the offense. If I'm wrong, I'll accept it. But I did not see one play ran last night and can't remember one being ran all season. Conversely watching other teams, they run plays pretty much the whole game.

That Zion play was just a dribble hand off. It wasn't a real play. Players are smart enough to play off actions, it's just not the most efficient style. Especially when you're playing against teams who are executing properly.

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That Zion play wasn't just a dribble handoff. We even had someone here post a clip of someone breaking down how that play worked.

I mean come on. It's not like Gentry/Finch just says "go out there and do something nice." They have a framework that our players are expected to make the right reads off. And we simply don't have players smart enough to do that, which should have been obvious a long time ago. Furthermore, there is too much reliance on shooting 3s and jumpers with hardly any actions or plays to get open looks at the rim.

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Originally Posted by luckyman

That Zion play wasn't just a dribble handoff. We even had someone here post a clip of someone breaking down how that play worked.

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You're right. The Zion play was a modification of a fairly common blade set. Usually the blade is run 3 out, 2 in, but in our version we had one of the interior players (I think it was Redick but my memory isn't amazing so maybe it was someone else) run a brush screen to create addition separation between Zion and his man.

It's not some mega genius super complicated set play, but it is still a set play. We ran it several times.

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Originally Posted by luckyman

That Zion play wasn't just a dribble handoff. We even had someone here post a clip of someone breaking down how that play worked.

I mean come on. It's not like Gentry/Finch just says "go out there and do something nice." They have a framework that our players are expected to make the right reads off. And we simply don't have players smart enough to do that, which should have been obvious a long time ago. Furthermore, there is too much reliance on shooting 3s and jumpers with hardly any actions or plays to get open looks at the rim.

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They're playing in an offense they just aren't running plays. They are moving the ball around and moving bodies but they are not set plays. I challenge you to rewatch the game and show one play they ran.

This is not a play. It's an action.
https://youtu.be/0h94McWFKb4

I picked a good year to be a 1st time season ticket holder :) Seriously, this team is disappointing on just about every level!

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Originally Posted by PineBeltPelican

I picked a good year to be a 1st time season ticket holder :) Seriously, this team is disappointing on just about every level!

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I would advise you not to buy season tickets until they actually win instead of saying they will. Also, Alvin is a career loser, so that should have been a hint that things may go south.

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Originally Posted by PineBeltPelican

I picked a good year to be a 1st time season ticket holder :) Seriously, this team is disappointing on just about every level!

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Keep the faith good sir. You will be rewarded soon

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Originally Posted by PineBeltPelican

I picked a good year to be a 1st time season ticket holder :) Seriously, this team is disappointing on just about every level!

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It's rough, for sure! Hopefully when Zion returns, he bumps up the entertainment value a lot. Unless he's TIm Duncan good as a rookie, he probably won't turn us into a winner, but at least games will have somewhere between 3 and 5 more ''oh my god'' moments each night :hihi:

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Originally Posted by Pelicanidae

It's rough, for sure! Hopefully when Zion returns, he bumps up the entertainment value a lot. Unless he's TIm Duncan good as a rookie, he probably won't turn us into a winner, but at least games will have somewhere between 3 and 5 more ''oh my god'' moments each night :hihi:

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Jax and Him has me so giddy.