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This podcast was fueled by misery and disappointment, and questions that seemingly get asked constantly when dealing with a .500 team that looks unstoppable some nights, uninterested in others. Who is to blame? The coach? The GM? The players? Everyone? Us for caring so much? When we say this is a .500 team, do we believe the talent makes it a .500 team, or are there other factors?
Preston saved Oleh from himself and invited David Grubb of Crescent City Sports to share his insight on the Pelicans — while we differ some on what we see as the problem, we do agree that changes need to happen.
We love our listeners and how giving them a voice gives us an insight into the pulse of the fanbase, so we open up with a question from Twitter that asks, “Is there any hope for this defense?”
David states that it’s fair at this time to start questioning Anthony Davis’ ability to be a team leader, and looks at how that lack of leadership has trickled down into lethargic play across the roster and its inability to create an identity.
Preston dives into the famous alternate reality of, “What if Melo was drafted by Detroit, what would his career have been like?” and applies it to Anthony Davis. Could he have been molded into a better leader in another environment? While doing so, he goes harder at ESPN than Rick Carlisle over the LaVar Ball article.
There’s some mutual scorn society for Davis’ latest fetish — the step-back 20’ jumper with a hand in his face. David breaks down how AD’s background could have warned us that he wasn’t necessarily prepped to man a leadership role due to his high school and college environments. David also goes in-depth on how Davis developing a more perimeter game caused his post game to never really develop as it could have.
Should Alvin Gentry be fired? Should people be criticizing for answering yes to that question? We discuss.
Are Dell Demps and Alvin Gentry linked in employment status? We all agree that something has to change. What are some tangible changes that can be made without blowing everything up? Deep dives abound.
We discuss the ceiling and cellar of this current iteration of the Pelicans, and what tweaks we could see so that we meet that ceiling.
Would you sell high on E’Twaun Moore’s trade value? Is Andrew Bogut a possibility in New Orleans? Are trades on the horizon? Find out.
Then we preview the next slate of games — while things are dismal in the moment, the immediate future should provide some brief moments of levity.
Subscribe. Give us a listen. Rate us. Review us. Share us with your friends. Send us your questions to be featured on future pods. Also, follow us on Twitter — @thebirdwrites @kevinbforbounce @OlehKosel @PrestonEllis @DMGrubb. Thanks for reading and listening.