Three games into the season, and the New Orleans Pelicans are the Washington Generals. The rest of the league is the Harlem Globetrotters.
Pels ruined their perfect season by beating the T-Wolves last night. Jonas Valanciulus did insane work, 22 points, 23 rebounds. Did a lot of that while trying to avoid his 6th foul.
Word on Zion is 2-3 weeks before they even evaluate his readiness. In the meantime, videos/photos of him the last couple of days show him to be well overweight, probably 300+. Watched an interesting video today where they brought up the comparison of his size/skill set to Charles Barkley, who's career got off to a slow start thanks to his weight issues. Difference between Barkley and Zion, according to the vid, was that Barkley had veteran Moses Malone as a teammate, who had the leadership chops to tell CB he was too fat, and got him to start taking care of himself. I don't see anyone on the Pels who has the seniority to be Malone to Z's Barkley.
The Pels have quietly climbed out of the NBA's cellar, though they still suck big time at 4-16 (Houston is 2-16). The lone bright spot has been Valenciunas (sp?). He's one of only two players in the Association shooting better than 50% from the field, 40% from 3-point land, and 90% at the line. Still no clear word on when Zion will be ready, and even when the foot is cleared, the guy looks like an offensive lineman right now. My bet is he will spend most of the season playing himself into shape.
i only started paying attention to the pels like 2 years ago, but it appears to me they are a clown organization
Pelicans destroyed the Spurs on the road tonight, without Brandon Ingram. Willie Green has done an amazing job in his first year as head coach, and all the talk is about what a positive culture he has created. The trade for C.J. McCollum was an incredible addition, and they are in very good shape to make the play-in tournament with 12 games remaining. If they can get Zion's head and health straight, I really like the direction this team is headed.
Another Ingram-less win on the road last night, this time over a Hawks team in the same position in the East that we're in in the West. Another piece of the puzzle is emerging in backup PG Jose "Grand Theft" Alvarado. Undrafted out of Ga Tech cuz he's barely 6 feet, but he is a spark plug off the bench, and had a crucial bucket in the closing moments of the game. Now tied with the Lakers for home court advantage in that 9 vs 10 matchup (and hold the tiebreaker advantage). More importantly, still in the hunt to catch the Clippers for the 8th spot. The difference between 8 and 9 is huge. Pels at Charlotte tonight, then home for 3 straight.