Mrakar wrote:This will be either a sweep or gentelman's sweep. If we had Zion i would be looking forward to this matchup but right now im scared of watching it.
2 best OKC players play with such a composure, dont force the issue, take their time, get to their spots, get to FT line and play excellent defense.
2 best(most-payed, they are not the best) Pelicans players take though shots, turn the ball over, don't get to FT line.
Name of the game? Efficiency. If CJ and Ingram get 25 points each on 25 shots we might as well play Jordan Hawkins and Matt Ryan.
I will write some observations and what Pelicans need to do in order to make this lets say a 6 game series or at least competitive sweep(see what i did there Lakers fans):
- Every minute of SGA has to be covered with one of Herb/Dyson. That means don't play Herb and Dyson togther, but stagger their minutes(lets say Herb 30, Daniels 10).
- Try to force the issue with Jonas Valanciunas at least first 2 games and see how it goes. Pels don't have efficient offense without Zion and if CJ and BI just do their mid-range bull this will be blowout sweep. Try to force Thunder to double Jonas and work on that. All of Pelicans players and i mean ALL OF THEM(including BI and CJ) are better at catch-and-shoot 3pt shots then at pull-up. No way Holmgren can hold Jonas 1v1, Jonas should be able to carry him on his back for full lenght of the court.
I know Jonas is not Nikola Jokic, he is sloppy, he makes fouls, he loses the ball, but i still think this is a better chance for an efficient shot then anything else Pelicans play right now(against playoff defense).
If you sit Jonas, and play Nance for 38 minutes, then you are playing OKC game, and they are far and away better then Pels in that game.
- play "The Knife"!!! Naji Marshall has to be in the game at least 20-25 minutes. There is enough minutes for him to get that. That guy isnt great basketball player but he has that edge in him, thats why he has that nickname. He will fight, he will stand for his teammates, he will knock open 3's and even though he is not as good of a defender as Herb and Dyson he will play his ass off every play.
- play Jose!!! Same thing as above. If CJ shrinks as he did today, dont be afraid to bench him. Alvarado is not just energy guy(even though he is great at that), he is actually a good basketball player. Yes he is small and can be abused on the other end, but he will hold his ground better then CJ will.
- Be smart. I know im boring with this, but Willie is not great offensive coach, everyone who watches the games knows that. The small things at the end of the games can't happen in the playoffs. For example game vs Lakers. Pels are down 4, 3 posessions in a row. 50sec left(shot at 40), 15 sec left(shot at 11), 10 sec left(shot at 3). What would you say if i told you all these shots were 2 pointers? How can you be down 4 and shot a 2 pointer with 3 seconds left? Even that at 11 seconds is dumb, but at least i can get some reasoning behind it(quick 2, foul, hope for a miss), even though that is also dumb. Shot the **** 3 pointer even if it is from half court you have more chance of winning game then hitting 2pt shot... That is just a small preview how Pelicans lose close games. That can't happen in this series.
*****EDIT: and most important thing of all. Willie needs to get at least 4 Ts in this series and first one like latest 5 mins into the game after bull SGA flop.******
Advantages for OKC: Efficient top scores, coach
Advantages for Pels: Bench
Prediction: 4-1 OKC(3 blowouts).
We did something right from that list but not most of the things.
1. Dyson didnt get a run on SGA, Jonas did get his run but not enough, and most of his minutes he wasnt put into right situation as i wrote couple posts earlier.
2. Naji played and was good again.
3. Jose played but now after watching this game he is maybe not the answer for the Pelicans in this series. Im fine with him playing limited minutes.
4. We didn't play smart. Ingram though shots, CJ dumb pull-ups, Nance turnovers late,...
And most important thing of all, Willies cheap ass still didnt get a tehnical. Cmn list Zion as ready to play and let him storm the court after bull play, he has enough money if you dont want to do it. Just get a **** tehnical for god damn once.