Mateo’s Hoops Diary: The Soaring Pelicans

Nothing elevates reputation in the NBA like a strong playoff showcase.   The same is true for the opposite.  Name and standing plummet at the sight of a poor exhibition much faster than the street cred earned through years of balling.

 In the west, the New Orleans Pelicans are tied 1-1 with the reigning conference champions Phoenix Suns now heading to NOLA for Games 3 & 4. The injury bug has raised its Medusa-like head and compromised Devin Booker for the rest of the series, making New Orleans’ job defensively much simpler with one less three-level scorer on the court.

Phoenix still has the ammo to get out alive in this series but losing Book to a hamstring injury makes this matchup a tossup. Cam Johnson was inserted after Booker left for the locker room following a failed fastbreak contest on Jaxson Hayes. Phoenix was outscored 48-40 in the remaining 16 minutes of the game.

In the fourth quarter, Chris Paul struggled to force separation without a screen and was unable to utilize his mid-range arsenal.  When CP would attack through pick ‘n’ roll with Javale McGee, Larry Nance was camped at the elbow waiting to ice the incoming ball handler, forcing Paul to give up the rock. While attempting a low volume of shots without option A (Booker), Paul mysteriously lost track of his starting big-man Deandre Ayton who took two shots in the final period.

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Centers are like wide receivers in football.  They are completely dependent on their quarterback feeding them the ball.  Surely, someone as gifted and knowledgeable about the game as Paul knows about the mismatch a 7-footer with a delicate touch creates near the rim.  It’s perplexing that only seven shots were attempted in the box while Paul and Ayton shared the court in close to nine minutes of closing time.

Even before Booker went down, NOLA and Phoenix were separated by a possession. Brandon Ingram was merciless, slipping past his defender on cuts to the hole and burying shots from outside the paint.  He registered 11 points in the first half yet powered his club to dub with 26 in the second.

The postseason is a grown man’s game usually dominated by veterans.  Meanwhile, the Pelicans are getting high-level production from three rookie role players through two outings.  The win on Tuesday for New Orleans saw 20 lead changes and eight ties before the younger and inexperienced team sent the crowd home with a frown.

Jose Alvarado is a defensive menace for any age.  It illuminates a dark light on some of the league’s scouts that someone like him, an ACC defensive Player of the Year in 2021, could go unnoticed through two rounds on draft night.   His skills as an irritant will sharpen with continued minutes against one of the league’s top guards this round.  

Herb Jones is another player that went too late in the draft.  Thirty-four names were called before him when he should have been picked in the lottery.  His work on the defensive side as a rookie is worthy of making an All-NBA Defensive Team.

One more draft night steal is Trey Murphy III.  At 21 years old he’s averaging 23 minutes a game in the playoffs and making 55% of his triples on 4.5 attempts this round. 

NOLA looks unrecognizable as the ninth seed they entered the play-in as.  Much of the credit belongs to first-year instructor Willie Green.  Back in December when Zion Williamson suffered a setback in his recovery, the betting chances for this team making the postseason were about as slim as a flagpole.  Now this squad is battling fiercely in the trenches with a team that had a better road record than any other club had at home.

A quick prayer to the basketball gods: Give us seven games.