Hello Pelicans Fans! I hope you don't mind me joining you?
I was a fan of Shaq back in the 90's when he was on Orlando... watching him play was like watching a real-life superhero... the things he did were not human. He came to the Lakers in 1996, and I have been a Laker fan ever since. I eventually transitioned to the Kobe-era, and have been dealing with the dark times that have succeeded him.
BUT... with the idiocy of Magic Johnson, ineptitude of Rob Pelinka, a clueless 57-year-old owner who inherited the team with a twitter profile pic with basketballs over her t!ts like some Kardashian-wannabe (those idiots actually live near me), and the fact that I have rooted against Lebron ever since "The Decision"... I have been left with the existential dilemma of, "What, exactly, am I a fan of??". A word? L-A-K-E-R-S? A place? And I realized, I have never been loyal to "things" or "brands... I am loyal to, and a fan, of PEOPLE.
I have never watched college basketball, but I watched nearly every Duke game this season, and I knew I would be following another team come next season. It's not just Zion's ridiculously exciting style with his hops, agility, speed, handles, and raw power, but his mentality. There is no ego on this kid (hopefully he stays that way), he is unselfish, and plays with a combination of joy and ferocious intensity that conjures up a meeting of the minds between Steph Curry and Kobe/MJ. I hoped it would be a Western team that received the first pick so I could catch more games, so I expected Phoenix. But here we are!
With Joel Meyers, Zo, Ingram, and Hart, it feels like I never left. Here are my thoughts on your new Pelicans:
*Mentality/Personality wise, Josh Hart is my favorite. No ego, works super hard, and is probably the smartest of the bunch, even if his potential is the lowest. He played awesome in his second summer league, winning MVP. After a great start to last season, he had some knee tendonitis which affected his shot and ability to stay on the court, so hopefully he is over that by the end of the summer. His shot is pure and confident, and he has the speed and athleticism to finish at the rim when players close out on him. A huge strength of him is his... strength; he can actually hold his own in the post against 3's and 4's--crazy for a guard (listed as 6'5" but I have suspicions he is 6'4"). He also plays good team defense, but his perimeter defense still needs work, despite when you will hear some journalists say.
*BI---He has tons of potential, but it is time for him to reach it. The pros, GREAT on defense, and super long, awesome for a switch-heavy defense. Can play the 1-3, as he has good passing skills and handles. Much better at finishing around the rim than he was the previous season. The bad: doesn't always play hard (hopefully Zion's energy rubs off on him), he has been told he is "the next Durant" for way too long, and he thinks he is a way better player than he actually is, and he can turn into a Carmelo-like black-hole on defense, pounding and pounding the ball without moving it because he believes he can get his shot up over anyone, which stats will tell you is not true. Likes the mid-range too much. His 3 has historically sucked. Now, I believe his numbers since the AS break have improved, so hopefully that trend continues, and hopefully he realizes that Zion and not him is the focal point of this team. Drove me nuts last year to the point that I was unsure if Luke Walton knew how to coach him at all. I couldnt tell whether the problem was Luke, BI's bball-IQ, or his ego. Hopefully he turns into a superstar, but if he doesn't, hopefully Gentry will nip the pre-maddona iso-play syndrome in the bud very quickly with him. Hopefully the blood clot will be a non-issue and he is shooting a thousand 3's per day this summer.
*Zo--AWESOME defensively for a guard and one so young. Like, really great. Our D went off the deep end last year after he got hurt. Great court vision, and plays at a super fast speed, so awesome for transition basketball. The bad- turns useless in half-court sets and becomes super passive, pretty sure his father emotionally abused every ounce of assertiveness from him, has shown that if there is a scuffle he won't stand up for his teammates, and just walks away, misses at the rim frequently--looks like he totally loses his focus and his mind is saying "don't ******** this up or my Dad will yell at me", and then he misses. His stroke is wonky and he has not been able to translate his 3-point percentage from college to the pros, but I believe, as with BI, his stats improved since the AS break. His three ball seems to either miss every time during game, or he never misses. Hopefully we will be seeing more of the latter. It has been a huge debate forever whether his stoke should be restructured, but no one has forced him to do that yet.
All in all, with the draft and recent trades, the Pels should be super exciting--athletic and fast with great defense, and hopefully decent spacing with the shooters that have just been added (and if BI and Zo can continue improving). The challenges will come with a new team learning each other's tendancies, learning to sacrifice and play unselfishly, moving the ball effectively, and learning each others' favorite spots. Very much looking forward to next season and will be repping the Pels at some Lakers games (and maybe a Warriors game). I hope you do not mind me joining you!
A couple questions for you guys: is there a shooting coach on the coaching staff? (Lakers have not had one, though we deperately needed one) The negative about the pelicans franchise that I have heard is that the medical staff doesn't know what they are doing, which has led to more injuries than almost any team? Is this still an issue?
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Originally Posted by luckyman
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