Pelicans Basketball - Unlikely Playoff Run

The New Orleans Pelicans were not supposed to be here when Demarcus (Boogie) Cousins went down a few months back with an Achilles injury. He missed the rest of this season, and there is some questions about whether he’ll be ready to start next season. There’s also a few questions regarding his next contract. He is a free agent after this season. And the Pelicans seem to have the lead in resigning him. In any normal year, Boogie would get the Max Contract that he can be offered, and all parties would be happy to do that. In fact most, if not all, teams in the NBA would give it to him. He’s that good of a player. However, the injury is throwing a wrench into things. No one know how he is going to return as a player. He could be just as good, but it seems that Achilles injuries are not as straightforward as other injuries.

This is supposed to be about the Pelicans playoff run, so I don’t to want to get too off track with other Pelicans issues. It was just necessary to get that out there to set the table of how great a run this team has been on.

I am writing this now because that run could be over soon. After sweeping the Blazers in the fist round, they now are in the middle of a series with the defending champs, the Golden State Warriors - a daunting task for any team, but especially one that is missing its other all NBA player. I think the Warriors have something like 4 of them. Steph Curry made his return in the second game, and he made his return known. Then there is Kevin Durant who is the conversation as best basketball player in the universe. Add in Klay Thompson, an all world shooter, and then there’s the x factor, Draymond Green.

Forget about the other three for a minute. Let’s talk about Draymond Green. He’s a punk. Charles Barkley on the TNT halftime show said he wants to punch Draymond in the face. This is why we need Boogie. No way is Green getting away with these antics with Boogie playing against him.

The biggest difference so far in this series is the free throw discrepancy. Both Anthony Davis and Jrue Holiday shot 24 shots in the last game - 0 free throws. On top of that, the Pelicans shot 66 shots in the paint. Hardly any free throws. Meanwhile, Golden State lived at the line. Many are saying that is a product of them playing at home, and hopefully the Pelicans get the same home court advantage. I won’t hold my breath.

The good news is that the Pelicans have been competitive. With the exception of the second quarter in game 1, they have played the Warriors pretty even. Again, I’m hoping that a little home cooking can push that in the Pelicans favor.

UPDATE:

It didn't get much better. The team played their hearts out, but the Warriors are just too stacked of a team. I hope that this performance through the playoffs has made New Orleans an NBA town, and that it carries over to next year. I would love to see the Smoothie King Center sold out every night next year, get a real home court advantage.

The magical run this year is over, but we can look to the offseason, see what moves the front office makes (will they re-sign Boogie?), see if Frank Jackson ever becomes something and continue to watch the maturation of AD, Jrue, Mirotic, and y'all know it's coming - Chieck Diallo!