The New Orleans Pelicans are in the Playoffs, so what now

The New Orleans Pelicans are in the Playoffs, so what now by Joshua Lea

The New Orleans Pelicans have achieved a key objective in their goals for the season. Landing a playoff spot is huge for this team. Tonight, they’ll play for the highest seed possible.

On January 26th, things looked bleak for the New Orleans Pelicans. The injury to DeMarcus Cousins was a potential a nail in the coffin for this Pelicans team. Many assumed that the Pelicans would miss out on the playoffs this season for a variety of different reason.

One conversation in particular I remember was someone saying, “Anthony Davis is too injury prone, and without Cousins, they can’t stretch the floor offensively.”

The narrative about the Pelicans was absolute. This, of course, before the NBA All-Star break. The Pelicans weren’t a team that felt their season was over because Cousins was injured. The Pelicans pulled off a trade for Nikola Mirotic just days following the injury to Cousins.

Trading away Omer Asik, Jameer Nelson, Tony Allen, and a first-round pick, the Pelicans gave themselves new life. Mirotic was able to spread the floor offensively and knock down timely shots for the Pelicans.

Let’s not forget the monstrous tear that Davis has been on since the All-Star break. We all remember when Davis sat down with Rachel Nichols of ESPN during the break. He talked about playing like Russell Westbrook in order to help the team win.

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Some took this as a sign Davis wants to be a Pelican for years to come. Others seemed to think he was going to overwork himself and risk injury.

However, Davis is averaging an NBA best 30.4 points per game since the injury to Cousins. Davis has lifted this team above the waters of the NBA’s lottery-bound teams and place them on the pedestal of the playoffs.

While Davis’ play has been inspiring throughout this season, we simply cannot overlook the fact that this has been a total team effort. Jrue Holiday, Rajon Rondo, and the rest of the Pelicans team is a huge part of the late-season success this team is displaying.

Aside from the total team effort, I think head coach Alvin Gentry deserves credit for keeping this team in fight mode during this stretch run. Now, he will not get a nomination for a coach of the year award or anything. However, his efforts should be applauded.

As the regular-season ends, this evening and the Pelicans gear up for the first-round. All should take a moment and acknowledge the fight and grit this Pelicans team has shown throughout the season.