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Let's talk about the New Orleans Pelicans/Hornets....a team that experienced so many highs and lows, but the results have rarely been good. Hope you enjoy!
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Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 (incompetech.com)
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#nba
contact@tablerock.com
I make all kinds of long-form NBA content which include player stories, analysis, breakdowns, and historical topics. Make sure to leave a like and subscribe if you enjoyed this video!
► X: https://www.x.com/@andyhoopsyt
► TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@andyhoopsyt
► Music:
Black Vortex by Kevin MacLeod
Movement Proposition by Kevin MacLeod
Super Power Cool Dude by Kevin MacLeod
Sardana by Kevin MacLeod
Lightless Dawn by Kevin MacLeod
On The Cool Side by Kevin MacLeod
Basic Implosion by Kevin MacLeod
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 (incompetech.com)
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
► Sources:
Stats and box-scores from Basketball-Reference.com, NBA.com, Statmuse.com, PBPstats.com
#nba
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SportsTranscript
00:00This is the 2012 NBA Draft.
00:03The New Orleans Hornets at the time saw the ping pong balls fall in their favor
00:07as they managed to get the number one overall pick with a 13.7% chance.
00:12And that means the number one pick in the 2012 NBA Draft goes to the New Orleans Hornets.
00:19This was the most opportune time to win the lottery
00:22because there was no doubt in anyone's mind that Anthony Davis would be a generational talent.
00:26He was the consensus number one pick long before the draft even happened.
00:31In their eyes, it wasn't a 13% chance to get the first pick.
00:35It was a 13% chance to change their franchise forever.
00:41While Davis, as an individual, flourished during his seven seasons in New Orleans,
00:46the results were underwhelming, with only two seasons where they had a winning record.
00:50And despite a massive overhaul of their coaching staff, trainers, and front office
00:55with four different GMs in 15 years.
00:58Ironically, the same result happened again.
01:00The Pelicans lucked into the number one pick in the same summer that Davis left,
01:04and they once again acquired a generational talent, Zion Williamson.
01:08This time with only a 6% chance.
01:11In Zion's first seven years, they also managed just two winning seasons.
01:16And this saga is almost as bad as the last.
01:19For a team that hit the jackpot twice, the outcome was honestly pathetic.
01:23And it's even more demoralizing when you realize
01:26they actually did very well in the drafting process for so many years.
01:30They managed to get some absolute steals in the draft and hit on so many picks.
01:36Of course, not every decision they made was a good one,
01:39but they did so many things right in comparison to other teams
01:42where the management and owners sabotaged themselves,
01:44like the Nets or the Bulls or the Clippers.
01:48So, let's take a look at how New Orleans spent 15 years rebuilding
01:52and still ended up nowhere.
01:55It's a season-high 40 for Zion Williamson.
01:58The game is tied.
02:00Timeout taken.
02:01And it looks like he's hurt.
02:02Look how he got hurt on this drive here.
02:09This trade, the Chris Paul trade to the Clippers,
02:12essentially signaled the end of this era of New Orleans.
02:15Paul had been drafted in 2005,
02:17and in six seasons, he led the team to three playoff appearances,
02:20including a 56-win season,
02:23which, to this day, is still the best record New Orleans ever had.
02:27While you could argue he should have had more success
02:29because he played at an MVP level,
02:31this was still more than anything they accomplished in the years after.
02:36It was a hectic time for the team,
02:38with their former owner, George Shin,
02:40trying to sell the team because of his financial issues
02:42in the post-2008 recession.
02:44But he couldn't find a buyer,
02:46so the NBA had to step in and take control.
02:48All of this sped up Paul's departure,
02:50but soon, that was an afterthought.
02:53Paul left in 2011,
02:55and a year later, Davis got drafted in 2012.
02:58And when he did,
02:59there was no other phrase to define this moment
03:01than franchise-changing.
03:03You see, he wasn't a normal number one pick.
03:06Davis won every single major award in college,
03:09individually and team-wise,
03:11culminating in a dominant tournament run
03:13en route to the NCAA championship.
03:16I remember watching this on TV when I was younger.
03:18Davis actually shot horribly in the final game,
03:21but it might have been the most dominant
03:231-for-10 performance ever.
03:25He had such a stranglehold on the game
03:27even without scoring.
03:28Some executives called him
03:30the best prospect since LeBron James,
03:32so for him to land on New Orleans' lap,
03:34while the Bobcats just came off a season
03:36with the worst record in history,
03:38and they ended up with Michael Kidd Gilchrist.
03:40It was a hilarious slap in the face.
03:42Because at the time,
03:43the separation between Davis
03:45and the rest of the draft was astronomical.
03:48Anyway, upon the arrival of Davis,
03:50the plan was simple.
03:52GM Del Demps had one purpose,
03:54build a team around your new generational star,
03:56and he did.
03:58One month after the draft,
03:59he already made two trades for players
04:01who he felt would fit next to Davis quite well.
04:04The first was for Ryan Anderson,
04:06a three-point sniper who can help space the floor for Davis
04:09to dominate in the pick and roll.
04:11The second was Robin Lopez,
04:14a center.
04:15One of Davis' requests was that
04:16he preferred to play the four,
04:18which allows him to float out to the perimeter more often,
04:21as opposed to just banging and bruising in the paint,
04:23so getting Lopez at the five
04:24allowed Davis to play the four.
04:27You would see this request from him
04:29several times, actually,
04:30because over the years,
04:31despite the data showing that
04:33Davis is much more effective as the center,
04:35he doesn't want to play the five all the time.
04:38And a loop to Davis!
04:40Oh, beautiful pass!
04:41And a terrific finish!
04:43The process to build around him
04:45had already started,
04:46and the team was slowly getting better.
04:48But by the 2014 offseason,
04:51Del Demp's move started to raise some questions.
04:54It's true that he managed to get some good players around Davis,
04:58in particular,
04:59a young Drew Holiday,
05:00Tyreek Evans,
05:01and Omer Asik to play center
05:03after Lopez got traded away.
05:05The result?
05:06It worked out,
05:07because it took only three years
05:08for them to return to the playoffs
05:10as they won 45 games in the 2014-15 season
05:13in a very competitive conference.
05:15It was only Davis' third season in the league,
05:17so this was a great improvement.
05:20But the concern stemmed from Demp's willingness
05:22to give up first-round picks just like that.
05:25He had to balance a fine line
05:26between building through the draft
05:28or giving up their assets
05:29to try and compete quicker,
05:30and it was a hard task
05:32that hinged on if Davis can truly become
05:33the premier number one option they hoped for.
05:36For a while, though,
05:38he certainly looked like it.
05:39In his third year,
05:40at the age of 21,
05:41he made first-team All-NBA,
05:43second-team All-Defense,
05:44and finished top-five
05:45in both MVP and DPLI voting.
05:48That's insane at that age.
05:50And to top it off,
05:51he led his team to the postseason.
05:53They did get swept,
05:55but they were the 8th seed
05:56against the Warriors,
05:57so that was expected.
05:59What everyone witnessed, however,
06:01was Davis putting up
06:02a performance of a lifetime.
06:03Davis strives,
06:05throws it down!
06:06He put up over 30 a game,
06:08and he was everywhere.
06:09This was all the confirmation
06:11that Pelicans needed
06:12to know that this
06:13is the face of their franchise
06:14for years to come.
06:16While the team was expected
06:18to build upon this successful year,
06:20the unraveling of this era
06:21started quicker than we all imagined.
06:23And how did it start?
06:24You guessed it.
06:33It started with a preseason game
06:35where Tyreek Evans injured his knee
06:37after bumping into Kendrick Perkins,
06:39his teammate.
06:40Davis had multiple stress reactions
06:42in his knee,
06:43along with a shoulder problem
06:44he endured all year.
06:46Holiday got an orbital fracture,
06:48and Eric Gordon,
06:49who originally came to New Orleans
06:50via the Chris Paul trade
06:52and desperately tried to leave
06:53for the Suns a few years prior,
06:54he fractured a finger
06:56in his shooting hand.
06:57Gordon also got blamed
06:59for his lack of conditioning
07:00and not caring about being here,
07:02and fans also noticed
07:03his weight gain
07:04and lack of effort.
07:05I guess his heart was in Phoenix,
07:07but his stomach
07:08was still in New Orleans.
07:10Pelicans fired head coach
07:12Monty Williams
07:12after five seasons on the job.
07:15The most important decision
07:17came with the firing
07:18of Monty Williams.
07:20At a glance,
07:21this seemed weird
07:22because Monty
07:22had just coached them
07:23to a playoff appearance,
07:24and one would think
07:25this was a good year for them.
07:27But he didn't get along
07:29with Del Demps.
07:30Demps had the vision
07:31of running a more up-tempo,
07:33modern offense
07:33because they were a young team
07:34who can take advantage
07:35of outrunning
07:36and outgunning their opponents.
07:38Under Monty,
07:39they ran a much slower,
07:40half-court-focused offense
07:41and ranked 27th
07:43in the league in pace.
07:44Demps did not like this,
07:46and that's why
07:46he replaced him
07:47with Alvin Gentry,
07:48who'd been an assistant
07:50on the Warriors for years,
07:51and he wanted Gentry
07:52to replicate the Warriors' offense
07:54in New Orleans.
07:55Upon his hiring,
07:56the owner Tom Benson stated,
07:58quote,
07:59he has proven himself
08:00as a winner
08:00and is in the midst
08:01of helping the Golden State Warriors
08:03in the NBA Finals.
08:04We look forward
08:05to having him lead our team.
08:07Yeah, he was doing interviews
08:08and got hired
08:09when he was still coaching
08:10the Warriors in the playoffs.
08:11Imagine hiring
08:12the lead assistant
08:13of the team
08:14that just decimated
08:14your team a month prior.
08:16It makes sense.
08:18Why not hire
08:18the lead assistant
08:19for the best team
08:20in the league?
08:21Regardless,
08:22the following year,
08:23the 2015-16 season,
08:25was a lost year
08:26for the Pelicans
08:27just due to all the injuries,
08:28and sadly,
08:29this would be a foreshadowing
08:30of things to come.
08:32This is Demarcus Cousins
08:34we talking about here.
08:35So a heist took place,
08:38Sacramento got robbed,
08:40the mayor needs to put out
08:41an APB
08:42to try to recover.
08:44When the next season started,
08:46the Pelicans made
08:46a blockbuster deal
08:47at the deadline
08:48to acquire
08:49Demarcus Cousins.
08:50This deal was made
08:51largely in part
08:52due to immense pressure
08:53from the top
08:54of the organization
08:54because Del Demps
08:56was on the hot seat.
08:57They literally lost
08:58eight games in a row
08:59to start the season
09:00and were basically
09:01in panic mode.
09:02But even before this trade,
09:04the Pelicans retooled
09:05their entire roster.
09:07Over the previous summer,
09:08the team tried to add
09:09more veterans
09:09and role players
09:10who can play with Davis.
09:12Shooters like
09:13Etuan Moore
09:13and Langston Galloway.
09:15Bigger wings like
09:16Dante Cunningham
09:16and Solomon Hill.
09:18They even took a chance
09:19on some young guys
09:20whom their former teams
09:21gave up on
09:21like Terrence Jones
09:22and Jordan Crawford.
09:24They even took
09:24Buddy Heald
09:25in the draft
09:26who only stayed briefly
09:27before getting thrown
09:27into the trade
09:28for Cousins.
09:30Overall,
09:31none of these acquisitions
09:32were their first choice
09:33but 2016 saw a massive jump
09:35in the salary cap.
09:37Plenty of free agents
09:38capitalized on this
09:39and got a substantial payday
09:41many of which
09:41their teams deeply regret.
09:44However,
09:45not many marquee players
09:46wanted to come to New Orleans.
09:47In fact,
09:48they actually lost
09:49both Gordon and Anderson
09:50in free agency.
09:52The dynamic of this roster
09:54changed
09:55as Demps claimed
09:56he wanted to establish
09:57a grittier,
09:57more defensive-minded approach
09:59and it kinda worked.
10:00Their team jumped
10:01from bottom 10
10:02in the league
10:02to top 10
10:03in defense.
10:04In reality,
10:06he was just throwing
10:06sh** at the wall
10:07to see if it sticks
10:08because he was doing
10:10whatever he can
10:10to not get fired.
10:12Either way,
10:13the season started poorly.
10:15The loss of Gordon
10:16and Anderson
10:16caused a massive regression
10:18on offense
10:18and the team looked
10:19nothing more like
10:20a ragtag group of guys
10:21doing whatever they wanted.
10:23Cousins' arrival,
10:24however,
10:24was a massive game-changer
10:26and soon,
10:27his impact
10:27became impossible
10:28to ignore.
10:30As Cousins
10:31gets his hands on it,
10:32tries to flag it down,
10:33does!
10:34Busts the layup!
10:35At first,
10:36there was a level
10:37of hesitancy.
10:38How can Demarcus Cousins
10:39and Anthony Davis
10:40play together
10:40when they occupy
10:41the same areas
10:42of the court?
10:43Well,
10:43that's only partly true.
10:45Over the years
10:46in Sacramento,
10:47Cousins had developed
10:47a relatively decent
10:48passing ability.
10:50His aptitude
10:51for seeing the court
10:51from the high post
10:52or go down low
10:53and post up in the block
10:54were two things
10:55that separated him
10:55from others.
10:57Davis was still
10:58the team's best player,
10:59of course,
10:59but Cousins
11:00was super versatile
11:01with a rare set of skills
11:03for a center
11:03as he could act
11:04as a secondary playmaker
11:06when they need him to.
11:07Yet again,
11:08this allowed Davis
11:09to slide to the four
11:10instead of playing the five.
11:12What most folks
11:13don't realize,
11:14though,
11:14is that this team
11:15wasn't much better
11:16with Cousins playing.
11:17When Davis was on the court
11:19without him,
11:19their team's offense
11:20and defense
11:21was almost exactly the same
11:22as playing with Cousins.
11:24It's actually slightly better.
11:26The reason for this
11:27isn't because Cousins
11:28makes the team worse,
11:29but because
11:30when he got injured,
11:31it forced Davis
11:32to play center,
11:33and Davis at center
11:34is better than Cousins
11:36at center.
11:37This injury,
11:38by the way,
11:38was horrible.
11:40This torn Achilles
11:41was the catalyst
11:42to the downfall
11:43of Cousins' career
11:44because he was never
11:45the same after this.
11:47For the Pelicans,
11:49it opened up the opportunity
11:50for Davis to flourish
11:51at center,
11:52and he dominated
11:52in a way he never did before.
11:55Over the course of 35 games,
11:57he averaged 30 and 12,
11:58two steals and three blocks,
12:00and the team finished
12:01with a better record
12:02without Cousins.
12:03While most fans thought
12:05it was a lost season
12:06after he went down,
12:07this turned out
12:08to be a blessing in disguise.
12:10This season
12:11was special.
12:12The acquisition
12:13of Rajon Rondo
12:14and Nikola Miritic
12:15were both critical
12:16to their success.
12:17Because of Rondo's vision
12:19and perimeter defense,
12:20Miritic was a great shooter
12:21to help space the court
12:22for Davis.
12:23So when the Pelicans
12:24entered the 2018 playoffs,
12:26nobody thought
12:27they could pull this off.
12:35prior to the series,
12:36all 22 so-called ESPN analysts
12:39predicted the Blazers
12:40would win the series.
12:41Not only did they lose,
12:42but they got swept.
12:44It was embarrassing.
12:45You wonder why
12:46every single person
12:47favored the Blazers
12:48because they were only separated
12:49by one game
12:50in the standings.
12:51Sure,
12:52the Pelicans lost Cousins,
12:53but they finished the year
12:54so strong
12:55you would think
12:55somebody would choose
12:56them to win.
12:57But eventually,
12:58they would fall
12:59in the second round
13:00to the Warriors again.
13:02The 2018 playoffs
13:03was the highest peak
13:04that this team reached
13:05during this era.
13:06This would,
13:07unfortunately,
13:08be the last positive moment
13:09of Davis' time
13:11in New Orleans.
13:12And the following year
13:14was,
13:14you know what happened.
13:15Davis and his agent
13:16Rich Paul
13:17requested a trade
13:18to a contender,
13:19specifically Los Angeles,
13:20so he can team up
13:21with LeBron.
13:22This led to a standoff
13:23between him
13:24and the organization.
13:25The team was sitting
13:26him purposely
13:26to protect his trade value,
13:28but then they got fined
13:29by the NBA
13:30and Davis was forced
13:31to play
13:31or else they'll
13:32keep getting fined.
13:34In 2019,
13:35Del Demps
13:35finally got fired
13:37as the team opted
13:37to move on
13:38from both him
13:39and Davis
13:39to get a fresh
13:40new start.
13:41What started
13:42as a hopeful saga
13:43that could push
13:44New Orleans
13:44into an elite
13:45top-tier contender,
13:46it ended in such
13:47a tragic way.
13:49Eventually,
13:49Davis got his wish
13:51and this era
13:51concluded in the most
13:52New Orleans way
13:53possible.
13:55An uncomfortable
13:55departure
13:56of their superstar.
13:59With the first pick
14:00in the 2019
14:02NBA draft,
14:04the New Orleans Pelicans
14:05select Zion Williamson
14:07from Duke University.
14:09The mourning process
14:10didn't last for long,
14:11though,
14:12and the fans
14:12were as giddy
14:13as they've ever been.
14:14You see,
14:15by the time
14:15the Davis trade happened,
14:16the Pelicans
14:17had already won the lottery
14:18for the number one pick
14:19a month before that,
14:20and they heard about
14:21the man waiting
14:22on the other side,
14:23Zion Williamson.
14:28That's amazing,
14:30isn't it?
14:30To go from
14:31one generational
14:32prospect to another.
14:33This time,
14:34however,
14:35everyone was more
14:35cautious to celebrate.
14:37Even before
14:38Zion got drafted,
14:40this moment
14:40made the headlines.
14:42Zion literally
14:43bursted out of his shoes,
14:44which caused him
14:45to fall awkwardly
14:46and tweak his knee.
14:46You know,
14:48besides Nike stock tanking
14:49because of this one incident,
14:50this normally
14:51wouldn't be an issue,
14:52a knee sprain,
14:53so what?
14:54But Zion is anything
14:55but normal.
14:57When something like this
14:58happens to a 6'6",
14:59300-pound beast
15:00of a human
15:01whose game is heavily
15:02reliant on speed
15:03and explosiveness,
15:04it's troubling.
15:05Injuries became
15:06the biggest worry
15:07of this franchise,
15:08especially with a man
15:09whose body
15:10is very prone to them.
15:11On paper,
15:12this should have been
15:13a fantastic start
15:14to a new era.
15:15Their rebuild
15:16got a massive kickstart
15:17because not only
15:18did they get Zion,
15:19but they also received
15:20a massive haul
15:21in exchange for Davis.
15:23This included
15:24Brandon Ingram,
15:25Lonzo Ball,
15:26Josh Hart,
15:26and four future
15:27first-round picks.
15:28Two of the four
15:29first-round picks
15:30turned into
15:31Nikhil Alexander Walker
15:32and Dyson Daniels.
15:34That's incredible,
15:35they hit on their picks
15:36very nicely,
15:37except Nikhil and Dyson
15:39would only blossom
15:39after leaving New Orleans.
15:42In hindsight,
15:43this was one of
15:44the most talented,
15:45deepest trade packages
15:46for a superstar
15:46in history,
15:47with almost every single
15:49asset producing
15:49a talented player.
15:51Every team would love
15:52to start their rebuild
15:53with Zion and all this,
15:54but this is the pelicans
15:56we're talking about.
15:57We all know
15:57something has to go wrong,
15:59and something did,
16:00immediately.
16:04Before the season
16:05even started,
16:06Zion suffered
16:06a torn meniscus
16:07in a preseason game.
16:09The karma
16:10couldn't get any worse,
16:11and this was already
16:12a bad sign
16:13for things to come.
16:14This was also
16:15the same knee
16:16that he injured
16:16back in Duke,
16:17and maybe there was
16:18something wrong with it
16:19that the doctors missed,
16:20or Zion is so heavy
16:21that the insane stress
16:22he puts on his joints
16:23would always make him
16:24more susceptible.
16:26While the pelicans
16:26were biding their time,
16:28waiting for him to recover,
16:29they actually did
16:30quite well in the draft.
16:32For example,
16:33in the 2021 draft,
16:34they hit on Herbert Jones
16:35with a second-round pick
16:36and made a pre-draft trade
16:38to get Trey Murphy
16:39in the mid-first round.
16:40Both Jones and Murphy
16:42well exceeded
16:43their draft positions,
16:44both having a major
16:45impact on the team.
16:46Their skill sets
16:47fit perfectly
16:48alongside the roster
16:49they were trying
16:50to develop around Zion.
16:51If only Zion
16:53could actually play.
16:54This was the problem.
16:56No matter how good
16:57the pelicans drafted,
16:59no matter how many points
16:59Brandon Ingram
17:00was putting up,
17:01or how Jonas Valanciunas
17:02had a career season,
17:03or the rapid development
17:04of their role players.
17:12The only thing
17:13that really mattered
17:13was getting Zion
17:14to suit up and play.
17:16Everything they worked
17:17so hard to build
17:18doesn't matter
17:18if their number one option
17:20can't play that much,
17:21because they have no chance
17:22of being a consistent
17:23playoff contender
17:24without him.
17:25In his first six seasons,
17:27he missed more than
17:27half of the total games
17:29he could have played.
17:30Funny enough,
17:31in 2022 and 2024,
17:33when the pelicans
17:34made the postseason,
17:34Zion was nowhere
17:36to be seen.
17:37Up until now,
17:38he has yet to play
17:39a single playoff game.
17:41The pelicans
17:42have tried very hard though.
17:44After firing Del Demps
17:45in 2019,
17:46they went through
17:47a cycle of three
17:47different GMs
17:48in six years,
17:49and through this time,
17:50they attempted to build
17:51as best as they can,
17:53not knowing when
17:53Zion would be back.
17:55This included
17:56a major trade
17:57in 2022
17:58made by former GM
17:59Trajan Langdon,
18:00where they sent
18:01a fairly big package
18:02to the Blazers
18:02for CJ McCollum.
18:04Now,
18:05the initial reaction
18:06was McCollum
18:07would not be
18:08a good fit.
18:09With Lonzo
18:09leaving in free agency,
18:11the pelicans
18:11would have much
18:12preferred a pass-first
18:13point guard
18:13with how many
18:14high-level scorers
18:15they already had,
18:16instead of McCollum,
18:17who wasn't even
18:17a real point guard.
18:19You'd immediately
18:20notice the role players
18:21they gave up
18:21in Josh Hart
18:22and Nikhil Alexander Walker,
18:24both of whom
18:24eventually turned
18:25into great players
18:26for multiple
18:26playoff contenders.
18:28But that's not
18:29what the pelicans
18:29needed at this point.
18:31They wanted McCollum
18:32because they needed
18:33another scoring punch
18:34due to how frequent
18:35Zion was absent.
18:37He was an experienced
18:38veteran guard
18:39who can create
18:39his own shot
18:40and sometimes pass.
18:41So with a perpetually
18:43injured roster,
18:44not just to Zion,
18:45but to Ingram
18:45and Trey Murphy too,
18:47having McCollum
18:47was an insurance policy
18:48and he was the kind
18:49of player they needed.
18:51In the short term,
18:52I'd say this trade
18:53worked out decently well,
18:55as McCollum led them
18:56to a winning record
18:57in an injury-filled
18:582023 season.
18:59And soon,
19:00it all came together.
19:10The 2023-24 campaign
19:13was special
19:14for one reason alone.
19:15Every single player
19:16remained fairly healthy.
19:18Well, not everyone,
19:19but almost everyone.
19:2149 wins
19:22and the sixth highest
19:23net rating
19:23in the entire league.
19:24The young Willie Green
19:26was the coach
19:27and initially,
19:28this hire was seen
19:29with not much praise
19:29because the Pelicans' gig
19:31was his first time
19:31as the head coach
19:32and fans wondered
19:33if he lacked the experience
19:34they needed during a time
19:36when they had to get better.
19:37But Green's philosophy
19:39aligned with many
19:40younger coaches
19:40in this league.
19:41He preferred a more
19:42free-flowing offense
19:43that prioritized
19:44high-quality looks
19:45and to get that,
19:46he emphasized the importance
19:47of rotating on a spread floor
19:49to open up driving lanes
19:50to allow their best scorers
19:52to flourish
19:52and everyone else
19:54play off of them.
19:55This offense
19:56had a lot less structure
19:57than the one Gentry
19:58tried to run,
19:58but the players
19:59connected more
20:00with Green, too.
20:02Most importantly,
20:03Zion played 70 games.
20:05And as of this video,
20:06that was the most
20:07he's ever played
20:08in a season.
20:09Yet due to the insane
20:10competition that year,
20:1149 wins
20:12wasn't even enough
20:13to guarantee
20:14a playoff spot.
20:15They entered the play-in tournament
20:16as the seventh seed
20:17and then,
20:18this happened.
20:20Look how he got hurt
20:21on this drive here.
20:23Look at after the finish.
20:24Kind of grimaces
20:25a little bit
20:26as he's running down.
20:27Well,
20:28he's headed to the locker room.
20:29We don't know
20:29the extent of the injury,
20:31but clearly not happy.
20:33After a thrilling performance,
20:35Zion left the game
20:36with 40 points
20:37and got literally
20:38everything he wanted
20:39against a pitiful
20:40Lakers defense.
20:41This hamstring injury
20:42was heartbreaking
20:43because after such
20:44a fantastic year
20:45and working his tail off
20:46to stay on the court,
20:47he couldn't make it
20:48past the finish line.
20:49And everything crumbled.
20:51While the Pelicans
20:52lost this game,
20:53they would win their next one
20:54and still make the playoffs.
20:56But against OKC,
20:58without Zion,
20:58they didn't stand a chance.
21:00Heck,
21:00even with Zion,
21:01they probably didn't
21:02stand a chance either.
21:03But it would have been
21:04way more fun to watch.
21:06What started as
21:07such a promising year
21:08concluded in the worst
21:09way possible.
21:10Another injury.
21:12The worst part is,
21:13you know what happens
21:13when Zion gets injured.
21:15It takes a long time
21:16for him to recover.
21:17This hamstring strain
21:18lingered until
21:19the following season
21:20and by the time
21:20he finally looked
21:21like himself,
21:22he fell and hurt his back.
21:24He appeared in just
21:2530 games that year
21:27and Ingram had his own
21:28foot and ankle issues
21:29which limited him
21:29to just 18 games.
21:31Herb Jones got shoulder surgery
21:32and only played 20 games.
21:34And DeJounte Murray,
21:35who they just acquired
21:36from the Hawks,
21:37ruptured his Achilles
21:38halfway through the year.
21:39You literally
21:40couldn't make this up.
21:41Everything fell apart
21:42at the same time.
21:44What did they do
21:45to deserve this?
21:46I guess when the
21:47basketball gods gave them
21:48two generational
21:49number one picks,
21:50they had to balance
21:51it out somehow.
21:52And this was their punishment.
21:54After such a successful year
21:56where they got back on track,
21:58to see this happen again
21:59is demoralizing.
22:00And they fell back
22:01into the dumps.
22:03On the bright side,
22:04there was some good news,
22:05too.
22:06By the time of the
22:072025 draft,
22:08they managed to make
22:09two additional
22:10great selections
22:11in Jeremiah Fears
22:12with the 7th pick
22:13and Derrick Queen
22:14with the 13th pick.
22:15Even Yves Missy
22:17in the year before,
22:18he too was a great
22:19late first rounder.
22:20That's what makes
22:21this whole Zion era
22:22so frustrating,
22:23because the Pelicans
22:24actually hit on so many
22:25of their draft choices
22:26during this rebuilding process.
22:28From Murphy and Jones
22:29to all these guys,
22:30it's hard to even blame
22:32their failures on management
22:33like so many other teams,
22:34because honestly,
22:35their front office
22:36wasn't that bad.
22:39Fast forward a bit
22:40and by the summer of 2026,
22:42the Pelicans perhaps
22:43initiated the biggest change yet.
22:46They announced
22:46a gargantuan overhaul
22:48of their medical,
22:49training,
22:49and performance staff.
22:5013 out of 16 employees
22:52were replaced
22:53with new people.
22:54So at least
22:55they were taking this seriously,
22:56as this decision
22:57was made by Joe Dumars,
22:58who joined the team
22:59as the executive vice president.
23:01He noticed that
23:02their shortcomings
23:03were almost solely due to injuries,
23:05not talent.
23:06You can't accuse them
23:07of not trying,
23:08and time will tell
23:09if this change
23:10was what they needed.
23:13The Pelicans' 15-year
23:15and ongoing rebuild
23:15that started with the exit
23:16of Chris Paul
23:17is still a process
23:18that's been a struggle
23:19to overcome,
23:20and much of it
23:21is due to a unique circumstance
23:22of having such
23:23an injury-prone superstar.
23:25Davis had his fair bit
23:26of injuries too,
23:27but compared to Zion,
23:28Davis looked like an Iron Man.
23:30Like, it wasn't even comparable
23:31in terms of injuries.
23:33When Zion first arrived,
23:34every move they made,
23:36every single transaction
23:37they had in mind
23:37was to find players
23:38to best compliment him.
23:40But over the years,
23:41as they moved through GMs
23:42from Bryson Graham
23:43to Troy Weaver,
23:44the team finally decided
23:45to do the thing
23:46we all knew was coming.
23:48They started to listen
23:49to trade offers
23:50for Zion.
23:51For many years,
23:52he was deemed
23:53as untouchable
23:54because when he did play,
23:55he had the ability
23:56to carry the team.
23:57But over time,
23:59there became
23:59too many stipulations,
24:00not just injuries,
24:02but to be overtly careful
24:03with his minutes
24:03and playing time.
24:05The way he practiced
24:06and trained
24:06to avoid injury
24:07had to be different
24:08and restrained
24:09as much as possible.
24:10It was just too much
24:12of an investment
24:12and too much caution
24:13for a player
24:14whose body can break
24:15at any moment.
24:17But until the
24:18Zion Williamson era
24:19concludes,
24:20we can only wait
24:20and see
24:21what happens next.
24:24Anyway,
24:25that's all folks.
24:25Thank you all
24:26so much for watching.
24:27I hope you all
24:28enjoyed the video
24:28and of course,
24:29as always,
24:30I'll see you next time.
24:32Peace.