AROUND the NBA: MIN Sweeps PHX!

[SleepingHero]

Are the Pelicans cursed?

Zion getting hurt the last 3 mins. CJ laying the biggest egg of the week so far. Ingram doesn't get played in the 4th????

What the heck is going on there???

[HoosierDaddyKid]

Are the Pelicans cursed?

Zion getting hurt the last 3 mins. CJ laying the biggest egg of the week so far. Ingram doesn't get played in the 4th????

What the heck is going on there???

I don't have the foggiest idea why BI wasn't out there unless he was hurt. Willie Green has some splaining to do.

[SleepingHero]

I don't have the foggiest idea why BI wasn't out there unless he was hurt. Willie Green has some splaining to do.

I know he's still coming back from his knee injury, but to not have him out AT ALL??? Especially when Zion went down??? Crazy coaching choice and it might cost him his job.

[RoyTarpleysGhost]

RIP Warriors dynasty

[RoyTarpleysGhost]

Klay 0-10

[Jym]

always feels good to see the Warriors lose

[RoyTarpleysGhost]

Keon Ellis > Josh Green

[The Jom]

Keegan Murray is a star

[Scott41theMavs]

Keegan Murray is a star

Not good for us - the West gets better and better, no way to dominate. Whereas the Celtics...

[SleepingHero]

Incredible collapse by the Warriors. Can't say it was surprising given their season but still it's weird as hell to see a team with Curry not make the postseason.

Klay is a special kind of washed. He can't be a 2nd option any more. But a glorified 3rd/4th option? He'd be lethal.

[Knutsen]

CJ laying the biggest egg of the week so far.

And then came Klay to redefine what an egg looks like.

[surfpuckmd]

I know he's still coming back from his knee injury, but to not have him out AT ALL??? Especially when Zion went down??? Crazy coaching choice and it might cost him his job.

Ingram played very poorly throughout the game and took a lot low-quality shots.  He had some nice passes but took too many contested, mid-range jumpers early in the clock.  The Pelicans made their runs mostly when he was on the bench.  Ingram and Zion just don't fit well together at all so I understand why Willie Green chose to sit Ingram while Zion was dominating.  

Once Zion exited the game though, it was idiocy to not have Ingram in the game.  That left only CJ McCollum to create offense.  I am sure Willie Green has his reasons for that decision.  My explanation though is that Willie Green is not a very good head coach.  He's a really likeable guy who the players love though.  David Griffin has emphasized a "family atmosphere" on the team.  That's been a priority.  Willie Green has made guys like Brandon Ingram and Zion like playing in New Orleans.  That does have a lot of value for a small market team.  

The Pelicans sans Zion are likely to be bounced out of the playoffs.  They'll have some serious decisions about Jonas Valanciunas, Brandon Ingram and Willie Green this off-season.  I believe they would be wise to shake up the roster to better fit Zion this off-season.  I think a solid, established head coach like Budenholzer would also make them more formidable.  

Their roster has several young guys who will be better next season-  Trey Murphy, Dyson Daniels and Jordan Hawkins especially.  With a few wise moves and another healthy Zion season, that team can be as good as anybody in the West.

[surfpuckmd]

Summary of his career. Complete dominance when he is in shape but simply cannot stay healthy.

It's a shame because he's the most exciting player in the NBA to watch when he gets it going.

[surfpuckmd]

New Orleans is interesting. They seem likely to go home if Zion is hurt for real. It’s hard to justify running that back. They have some decent players with length and skills needed to be good. They need a real PG. McCollum contract looks really bad now. Jonas is useless in real games. Zion needs to get on Jenny Craig

Mitchell would make a lot of sense for them, but i suspect many teams will also be in on him

CJ fits better than Ingram because CJ is willing to take a lot of 3s and plays well off of Zion.  Ingram refuses to adapt his game to Zion's and prefers to dribble around and take contested 17-foot shots.  Ingram is very talented but is the guy that just doesn't fit there.  

Zion is actually in pretty good shape right now.  The problem is that he showed up overweight at the beginning of this season.  It took him 4 months to slim down.  His diet is clearly not a priority for him.  

They need a big man who is either more mobile defensively than Jonas or can space the floor.  Valanciunas is a good player but his scoring near the basket doesn't fit with Zion at all.  They both need that space to operate.  

David Griffin will need to modify the roster to make this work around Zion.  As it is, a lot of the talented pieces just don't fit.

[RGP1981]

Rejoice and be glad! The Wicked Witch of the West, GSW, is finally dead!

[HoosierDaddyKid]

Ingram played very poorly throughout the game and took a lot low-quality shots.  He had some nice passes but took too many contested, mid-range jumpers early in the clock.  The Pelicans made their runs mostly when he was on the bench.  Ingram and Zion just don't fit well together at all so I understand why Willie Green chose to sit Ingram while Zion was dominating.  

Once Zion exited the game though, it was idiocy to not have Ingram in the game.  That left only CJ McCollum to create offense.  I am sure Willie Green has his reasons for that decision.  My explanation though is that Willie Green is not a very good head coach.  He's a really likeable guy who the players love though.  David Griffin has emphasized a "family atmosphere" on the team.  That's been a priority.  Willie Green has made guys like Brandon Ingram and Zion like playing in New Orleans.  That does have a lot of value for a small market team.  

The Pelicans sans Zion are likely to be bounced out of the playoffs.  They'll have some serious decisions about Jonas Valanciunas, Brandon Ingram and Willie Green this off-season.  I believe they would be wise to shake up the roster to better fit Zion this off-season.  I think a solid, established head coach like Budenholzer would also make them more formidable.  

Their roster has several young guys who will be better next season-  Trey Murphy, Dyson Daniels and Jordan Hawkins especially.  With a few wise moves and another healthy Zion season, that team can be as good as anybody in the West.

Good points. They also need a PG. CJ is a SG, who is playing the point along with Zion who brings the ball up court and initiates the offense. The West is only going to get tougher with teams like Memphis (who suffered major injuries) Houston who showed major improvement, and N.O. who just needs a tweak or two, and will replace the old guard teams such as the Warriors.

[Chicagojk]

CJ fits better than Ingram because CJ is willing to take a lot of 3s and plays well off of Zion.  Ingram refuses to adapt his game to Zion's and prefers to dribble around and take contested 17-foot shots.  Ingram is very talented but is the guy that just doesn't fit there.  

Zion is actually in pretty good shape right now.  The problem is that he showed up overweight at the beginning of this season.  It took him 4 months to slim down.  His diet is clearly not a priority for him.  

They need a big man who is either more mobile defensively than Jonas or can space the floor.  Valanciunas is a good player but his scoring near the basket doesn't fit with Zion at all.  They both need that space to operate.  

David Griffin will need to modify the roster to make this work around Zion.  As it is, a lot of the talented pieces just don't fit.

The Pelicans almost have too many bodies.  A lot of good players.  I like some that don't even play.  Plenty of picks too to help make moves moving forward too.

For me it all depends on Zion.  If he can take his health seriously, he can be a top 10 player in the league.  If he is, that team is one of the better positioned teams moving forward.   I am just so disappointed in his professionalism.   Last night he was awesome.   Although while he still has the strength and the quickness, the explosion that made him such a unique prospect is really not there yet.   I mean he still can dunk, but not what he should be doing as a young 20's guy.   Right now, I think he is a guy who shows what he can do but is always going to be injured.   He needs to take that part of his game seriously.    Hopefully like a lot of young guys he learns before it is too late.

CJ is a good player, but always leaves you wanting more.   The next playin game will be real important for him.   He has sort of reputation (not Barnes level yet) of being a guy who struggles in those big games.

In hindsight, The Pelicans should have explored KP this offseason.  They have plenty of picks and assets where they easily could put an attractive package together while keeping a lot of their assets.   KP is an injury risk, but he would have looked good with that roster.  They need to find a better fitting part than Jonas.   


********************
On GS, I was expecting a better performance.   Give it to Sacramento, they came out and took it to GS.   Disappointed GS didn't put together a better performance.  They are going to have tricky questions this summer.   I was trying to think where Chris Paul goes next year?   I don't see a lot clear options.   

GS got it to 1 early in the second half.   Then Ellis hit a three.  Ellis did something else (maybe loose ball...can't remember) that lead to another 3.   GS missed 1-2 shots and then Barnes hit a 3.   Made a 1 point game into a 10 point game and GS never got closer.   That was the game.  I was expecting GS to keep it close and then grind out a win late (similar to the second Kings-Mavs game).

[youzigizag]

Ingram played very poorly throughout the game and took a lot low-quality shots.  He had some nice passes but took too many contested, mid-range jumpers early in the clock.  The Pelicans made their runs mostly when he was on the bench.  Ingram and Zion just don't fit well together at all so I understand why Willie Green chose to sit Ingram while Zion was dominating.  

Once Zion exited the game though, it was idiocy to not have Ingram in the game.  That left only CJ McCollum to create offense.  I am sure Willie Green has his reasons for that decision.  My explanation though is that Willie Green is not a very good head coach.  He's a really likeable guy who the players love though.  David Griffin has emphasized a "family atmosphere" on the team.  That's been a priority.  Willie Green has made guys like Brandon Ingram and Zion like playing in New Orleans.  That does have a lot of value for a small market team.  

The Pelicans sans Zion are likely to be bounced out of the playoffs.  They'll have some serious decisions about Jonas Valanciunas, Brandon Ingram and Willie Green this off-season.  I believe they would be wise to shake up the roster to better fit Zion this off-season.  I think a solid, established head coach like Budenholzer would also make them more formidable.  

Their roster has several young guys who will be better next season-  Trey Murphy, Dyson Daniels and Jordan Hawkins especially.  With a few wise moves and another healthy Zion season, that team can be as good as anybody in the West.

How was Ingram's defense?

[SleepingHero]

@ShamsCharania
Raptors' Jontay Porter has received a lifetime ban from the NBA for violating league's gaming rules


@ShamsCharania
NBA announces investigation found Porter "disclosed confidential information to sports bettors, limiting his own participation in one or more games for betting purposes, and betting on NBA games." From Jan. to March, Porter placed 13 bets on NBA games using associate's account.


@ShamsCharania
NBA investigation found that prior to March 20 game, Porter disclosed confidential information about his health to an NBA bettor. Another person connected to Porter placed an $80K parlay to win $1.1 million wagering Porter would underperform. The bet ultimately was frozen.



@ShamsCharania
Investigation shows on the 13 NBA bets Porter made: Total payout was $76,059, resulting in net winnings of $21,965. Three of the bets were multi-game parlay bets that included one Raptors game, in which Porter bet that the Raptors would lose.

[Winter]

Banned for life and his net winnings were just under $22,000.

There is truly no limit to how stupid some people are.