Officially official: The NBA is back baby!

[Pelicanidae]

Gotta say I'm exciting hearing both Gentry and Zion speak positively on his shooting improvement.

I remember being on the ''Zion will be a solid NBA 3pt shooter'' wagon back before we even drafted him, when a lot of people were convinced he was going to be a total none-shooter, and I was insistent that he could be at least decent. I brought up how, over his final 13 games in college, he had shot 40+% on more than 3 per game, and how his touch at the basket was encouraging, as well as how his FT% at college wasn't great but it certainly wasn't garbage.

Then so far, in the NBA he's been a 40% 3pt shooter on tiny tiny volume. I'm still sure he can be at least about 35% on decent volume, enough to make sure that you can't just leave him alone on the perimeter. To hear that Gentry and Zion are both clearly engaged with that possibility, combined with the fact that Zion was willing to at least take them early in his career, is very encouraging to me.

[Nola3]

Haha I'm glad his stepdad is earning that $400K

[Pelicanidae]

Once Zion starts bombing 30 footers the league is gonna be over. It's over for everyone.

[msusousaphone]

I don't know where else, I already conceded that I don't know the details about everywhere in the US.

But I find it very hard to believe that the NBA only got one even semi-plausible offer, and that they were subsequently just forced to pick Disney, totally unrelated to their pre-existing business ties to the company.

I'll go all in.

If Disney World doesn't exist, the bubble idea/format doesn't happen.

At least, not with this many teams.

[13 - 3]

I'll go all in.

If Disney World doesn't exist, the bubble idea/format doesn't happen.

At least, not with this many teams.

https://www.nola.com/sports/pelicans...7fd0343f8.html

https://www.forbes.com/sites/christo...eturn-to-play/

According to sources with the team and the local government, New Orleans executives, along with state and city officials, put in a diligent effort to present a very strong bid to act as one of the cities in a multiple-city campus/bubble plan.

[PELICANSFAN]

I don't know about everywhere in the US, but again, I'm sceptical that Disney World is the only place in the entire country that could have made a suitable venue. Especially given that Disney World has several drawbacks to its use, including but not limited to
1) Being in Florida
2) The impossibility of setting up a real bubble

I'm much more likely to believe, and indeed I do believe, that it was one of several competing ideas that ended up winning at least in part because of the sorts of things you mentioned: Disney has plenty of financial ties and stakes to the NBA, the two have a pre-existing business relationship, and there's already a cash flow between the two whether it be for broadcasting, or even small things like Disney being the logo sponsors for the Magic.

The Disney setup is by far the most logical setup for what they are trying to achieve. I cannot think of another area in the country that would make more sense (logistics wise).

[Pelicanidae]

The Disney setup is by far the most logical setup for what they are trying to achieve. I cannot think of another area in the country that would make more sense (logistics wise).

Sure. I'm not going to argue about it because it's not like I have any insider information. I just have my suspicions that their decision was not made out of cold-hearted reason, or at least, not entirely.

[Pelicanidae]

https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/n...mpression=true

Matthew Martinez, a consulting cardiologist for the National Basketball Players Association, separately echoed that point to ESPN and said rest is key after a confirmed positive test because doctors believe that "the amount of cardiac damage can increase if you continue to exercise in the face of an active infection."

[...]

"So that's the reason why we worry about it that that high level of exercise intensity can increase your risk of having an adverse event when there's cardiac damage related to a virus."

Last month, Dr. Dermot Phelan, cardiologist and Director of the Sports Cardiology Center at Atrium Health's Sanger Heart & Vascular Institute told CBS Sports, "we have data from hospitalized patients that show between seven and 33 percent of people will have some cardiac injury after getting COVID-19."

That's particularly worrisome for NBA players, especially considering some concerning recent trends:

The league and NBPA have, in general, focused more on the heart in recent years, and part of those efforts are tied to the health screenings the NBPA instituted for retired players in the wake of several notable NBA retirees dying suddenly from heart-related issues.

"Basketball players have the highest incidence of sports-related sudden cardiac death (SCD) in the United States among all athlete groups," a 2016 study by NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center reported.

[msusousaphone]

https://www.nola.com/sports/pelicans...7fd0343f8.html

https://www.forbes.com/sites/christo...eturn-to-play/

Failed bid.

You know they would NEVER be having 22 team just chilling up in New Orleans.

No one on this site is going to believe they would be putting 22 teams in any metro area. Disney World. Was. The. Only. Option.

*multiple clap emojis

[Pelicanidae]

Zion Williamson (23.6 PPG 6.8 RPG) gets buckets at @PelicansNBA practice! #WholeNewGame pic.twitter.com/enpivrPYp2

— NBA (@NBA) July 11, 2020

[Nola3]

Zion Williamson (23.6 PPG 6.8 RPG) gets buckets at @PelicansNBA practice! #WholeNewGame pic.twitter.com/enpivrPYp2

— NBA (@NBA) July 11, 2020

I've missed him so much....

[Biasvasospasm]

I've missed him so much....

It turns out that neither Jaxson Hayes or E'twaun Moore are Zion stoppers.

[Pelicanidae]

It turns out that neither Jaxson Hayes or E'twaan Moore are Zion stoppers.

That play where he just trucks E'twaun in transition while dribbling and it doesn't even look like he did it on purpose. E'twaun just grazed him and went flying.

That's just power, nothing you can do with that.

[Biasvasospasm]

That play where he just trucks E'twaun in transition while dribbling and it doesn't even look like he did it on purpose. E'twaun just grazed him and went flying.

That's just power, nothing you can do with that.

I like that he can pass out of the high post, but I also kind of wanted to see how the post up on E'twaun ends.

[Pelicanidae]

I like that he can pass out of the high post, but I also kind of wanted to see how the post up on E'twaun ends.

I love seeing passing like that personally, because that's the difference between an effective but limited modern scorer, and an offensive hub. If Zion was a black hole who could finish anything inside of 10 feet and nothing else, that would be cool and definitely valuable but it wouldn't be possible top 5 player, which Zion is. You add the passing threat of a guy who can see the court and is willing to kick out when defenses collapse, that's where the value goes flying up. Add a dribble drive game, and you're starting to approach that mega star area.

It would be funny to see him post Moore though

[Biasvasospasm]

You add the passing threat of a guy who can see the court and is willing to kick out when defenses collapse, that's where the value goes flying up. Add a dribble drive game, and you're starting to approach that mega star area.

I think offensively, the area Zion struggled the most coming back relative to where he was in preseason and at Duke was initiating from the perimeter or from the mid post as a driver. His handle was looser and his first step was less devastating. Lot of turnovers related to losing his dribble or getting stripped. Hopefully now, 9 months after his meniscus injury and having had time to work on his game during the hiatus, he'll start to regain that. I think it's crucial for him to keep his usage high when the game slows down in the last few minutes and leverage his passing ability.

[Pelicanidae]

I think offensively, the area Zion struggled the most coming back relative to where he was in preseason and at Duke was initiating from the perimeter or from the mid post as a driver. His handle was looser and his first step was less devastating. Lot of turnovers related to losing his dribble or getting stripped. Hopefully now, 9 months after his meniscus injury and having had time to work on his game during the hiatus, he'll start to regain that. I think it's crucial for him to keep his usage high when the game slows down in the last few minutes and leverage his passing ability.

I agree, it seemed clear to me that his handle in particular was rusty, and since he didn't have any sort of ''training camp'' time due to rejoining the team mid-season, there wasn't an opportunity for him to work it back into shape. The rusty handle was just being used in game, and you're right, there were a bunch of turnovers where he was doing a move that I am certain he can do (because he did it, a ton, at Duke) but that his handle was just clearly not really working with at the time.

With the fact that we know he's been in the gym ''every day'' during quarantine with his dad, working on ''fundamentals'', we should hope that the handle is a little bit more like it was at Duke and he'll be able to initiate more consistently in the way that we absolutely know he can do.

And yep, as you say, that also allows the passing to come out more. We saw it here and there as he got more game time, some really nice drive and kicks and secondary passing, but hoping that a more confident handle and a bit more time since the injury will allow him to incorporate more of it with more regularity.

He's a really really special player and prospect and I'm just hoping that the work he's putting in pays off, because if he can be even 90% as dominant in the NBA as he was in college, that's a top 5 player in the league at minimum.

[Pelicanidae]

#Pelicans Head Coach Alvin Gentry says the team had their best practice so far. He said the intensity was great.

— Daniel Sallerson (@dsallerson) July 12, 2020

[WildlifeAirGrp]

#Pelicans Head Coach Alvin Gentry says the team had their best practice so far. He said the intensity was great.

— Daniel Sallerson (@dsallerson) July 12, 2020

I've always figured and said on occasion, that whoever can get over the fear of this thing first, will be the one that might win it all. Not denying that it isn't real, but understand the NBA and Peljcans have done everything possible to make their players and staff safe and that if someone does test positive, they have access to the best healthcare on the planet.

The Pels seem to be doing just that. Fingers crossed. I just can't wait to hear TGraf on the radio and Joel Meyer and company with a real game going on in the background.

How important would it be for our psyche as citizens for this experiment to actually work? I think the NBA has an opportunity to do something special. But what do I know?

[13 - 3]

Lakers crumbling? Rondo is out

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/...thumb-practice

[Pelicanidae]

I think it's a bit extreme to say they are "crumbling". It's not like Rondo is their win factor.

What is concerning for them though is that they now have basically one lead ball handler and he's LeBron. LeBron is incredible, but he's also 35 and we've seen what can happen when a team, even a good team, has to rely on LeBron to initiate everything at all times, and which therefore struggles when he's on the bench.

It's kind of funny, in his final season in New Orleans, Anthony Davis was showing those strides as a passer we had always wanted. He wasn't suddenly Jokic or anything but he looked more decisive; I remember a bunch of nifty passes from the first half of that year where I was pleasantly surprised. Since going to LA, that part of his game has basically vanished again.

Would be very useful for them if it could show back up, but that would require a team that can generate off ball looks, which outside of Danny Green and Caruso they really don't have.

[Pelicanidae]

Jaxson Hayes says he worked on his shot and ball handling during quarantine

— Shamit Dua (@FearTheBrown) July 13, 2020

DHO and pick/pop Jax incoming

I think his shot developing is a really good sign, as the ability to stretch the floor on offense would help his long term fit with Zion as well as his own versatility on offense, but the handle is super exciting too. Doesn't need to be super high level, but the ability to make moves to close distance to the rim or navigate defenses is super vital for bigs, and when they're as fluid and mobile as Jax it can be a really high level impact skill.

Of course, while he hasn't shown crazy signs, Jax has also shown flashes of solid big man passing from time to time. Having an actually usable handle amplifies those skills by a lot.

[Pelicanidae]

Jax also says he's learned a ton from Nico because even though Nico is a rookie, he's not a ''normal'' rookie, and Nico has given him a ton of tips surrounding how to handle different situations on the court, ways of handling defense, etc. Also says that that Nico ''knows what he's doing'' and that it just took him a little while to adjust to the NBA but now he's really locked in and knows what he's doing

[Pelicanidae]

Lonzo to Zion to beat the horn! #WholeNewGame pic.twitter.com/EcCupk4lTA

— NBA (@NBA) July 13, 2020

KRich was HOOPING today https://t.co/ql0e3QEasm

— JJ Redick (@jj_redick) July 13, 2020

[Pelicanidae]

How good can NO be? Well, since Zion came back they were 11-9 and ranked 11th offensively and 8th defensively. And they have 8 guys 25 or younger (Zion, Ingram, Ball, Hart, Jackson, Hayes, Alexander-Walker and Okafor). Pelicans fans have to be excited.

— Stan Van Gundy (@realStanVG) July 13, 2020