{"id":780,"date":"2016-09-23T07:45:37","date_gmt":"2016-09-23T11:45:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonprobasketball.com\/?p=780"},"modified":"2016-09-21T22:11:13","modified_gmt":"2016-09-22T02:11:13","slug":"keys-new-orleans-pelicans-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2016\/09\/23\/keys-new-orleans-pelicans-season\/","title":{"rendered":"Two Key Factors to a Successful New Orleans Pelicans Season"},"content":{"rendered":"

During the 2016-17\u00a0NBA<\/strong>\u00a0season, headlines will be dominated by\u00a0Kevin Durant<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0and the Golden State Warriors<\/strong>\u00a0on a daily basis. However, having a super-team doesn\u2019t guarantee a championship; just look at the 2012-13\u00a0Los Angeles Lakers<\/strong>. Everything can change and anything can happen in the NBA. A team can implode, the injury bug could strike, or a team simply might not play to its potential. In this\u00a0Last Word On Pro Basketball<\/strong>\u00a0series, we\u2019ll break down which two key factors will determine the fate of each NBA team in the upcoming season.<\/em><\/p>\n

In this edition, we\u2019ll take a look at the New Orleans Pelicans<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Two Key Factors to a Successful New Orleans Pelicans Season<\/strong><\/h1>\n

Outside of New Orleans Pelicans<\/strong> fans, nobody really understands the Pelicans. That’s a shame, because they are an intriguing team with a good\u00a0young core. Most importantly, the Pelicans\u00a0are a family.\u00a0Assistant\u00a0coaches have been\u00a0working in the off-season to support their community.<\/a>\u00a0Pelicans’ players\u00a0have\u00a0closer friendships\u00a0than players on many teams in the league. Being close-knit doesn’t guarantee wins\u00a0or\u00a0playoff appearances, but it does count for something<\/a>.<\/p>\n

First Key:\u00a0Time to Adjust to Changes<\/strong><\/h2>\n

One of the problems that the Pelicans had last year was a lack of time to adjust to the front office’s tinkering with the team. Tinkering with the team’s roster is important in the NBA, and it can be positive\u00a0(like for the Golden State Warriors) or negative\u00a0(like for the\u00a0Dallas Mavericks<\/strong>). The Pelicans are in the delicate middle section. Nothing has gone wrong enough to blow up\u00a0the whole team,\u00a0but nothing is\u00a0working well\u00a0enough to not tinker with it. The adjustment period for changes\u00a0is such an important part of the Pelicans’ success, both in this season and in the future. Anthony Davis<\/a><\/strong> will be an incredible star player, provided the Pelicans keep a good, or at least decent, supporting cast around him and monitor his health.<\/p>\n

There are several media voices<\/a> that came out during the season and\u00a0tried to dissect the Pelicans’ problems. A surprising theme was that there may not have been a\u00a0problem before, nor was there one after New Orleans made moves. The Pelicans changed coaches, offenses, defenses<\/a>, and rotations, so how could there not be growing pains? Fans like to speculate, because every\u00a0fan wants to see instant success, but the\u00a0problems may have simply been due to a lack of time to adjust to their changes. If the Pelicans\u00a0are given that time, they will surprise not only their fans, but the entire league.<\/p>\n

Second Key:\u00a0Cohesiveness and Stability<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Once the Pelicans are given all the time in the world to grow and succeed, they can move on to their next problem: cohesiveness. Last season, there was no stability\u00a0within the organization.\u00a0Alvin Gentry<\/strong> wanted to push the pace, the front office kept a bunch of slow players, and the players tried to mix it up with both playing styles. There was no cohesive nature to the plan. The blame falls on everyone in the\u00a0Pelicans organization, from top to bottom. The coaches need\u00a0to be more skilled at managing rotations and being flexible. If anything, the injuries that plagued the Pelicans last season were\u00a0a blessing in disguise, because the coaches were forced to dig deep into their rotations and occasionally try new things with\u00a0castoffs and players who came out of nowhere.<\/p>\n

The players are at fault for trying to do\u00a0more than they are capable of handling. They are admirable in their efforts and respectful with their demeanor. Still, a players only meeting, a coaches meeting, anything is better than Omer Asik<\/a><\/strong> trying his best to do wind sprints for 48 minutes or\u00a0Jrue Holiday<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0trying to make any stretch forward who\u00a0plays\u00a0work within the offense. There is a better way; there has to be. Shame on the front-court for looking at the roster and deciding to just push the pace\u00a0and see how it goes. The players have simply been playing away from\u00a0their strengths and beyond their abilities. Hopefully, this team gets the balance right at some point next season. Even last year’s\u00a0highlights are born of chaos and hustle, not solid team strategy:<\/p>\n