Official Game Thread: Hawks at Pelicans

[lethalweapon3]

"B.I. and Zion! Brought to you, today, by The Number 10."

 

So, how did your summer go?

Mine? On balance, not too shabby. Got some overdue housework projects done, shed some pounds, got a little intown hiking in, got chased by some wild boars while going streaking, and after many trials, I perfected this Hummingbird cake recipe that I had been meaning to… oh, excuse me? Why, of course, I made that part up! It was Red Velvet cake, actually! And, yes, it was scrumptious! I’ll save Kevin some, next time!

I don’t want to “boar” you with my troubles. There’s just something about David Griffin, head honcho of the New Orleans Pelicans, that tends to knock Pels fans off their feet.

Griffin showed up on Media Day last month with a new head coach, a re-tooled roster, and his trademark gift of gab. He was casually rifling through things the team looks forward to accomplishing this season when he casually let drop a miniscule nugget of detail. Specifically, that the franchise’s supersized lottery prize Zion Williamson has been on the shelf since a time prior to Summer League, having fractured a metatarsal in his foot. But, hey, no worries!

“He had a fractured right foot that was repaired surgically. His timeline should get him back on the court in time for the start of the season,” shared a glib Griffin with the suddenly glum reporters. “He was working out on his own on the court and, frankly, was doing an unbelievable job. It’s crazy sometimes what happens when you look your best.” Mm-hmm.

Okay, fine! Maybe it would have been courteous to have spent the preceding summer weeks advising season ticket holders that the franchise face (with all apologies due to All-Star swingman Brandon Ingram) is in a sort of a holding pattern. But that’s neither here nor there. Griff wouldn’t be so optimistic if there was reason to anticipate a setb—

“Obviously, two to two-and-a-half weeks from now,” Griffin acknowledged a couple weeks into NBA preseason action, of Zion’s plans to get his healing foot scanned, “means he will not be on the floor for the first week of games.” That includes today’s nationally televised affair with the visiting Atlanta Hawks (7:30 PM Eastern, ESPN, 103.3 FM in ATL, as United’s on 92.9). Griff and the team added there was, this time around, “no fixed timeline,” pertaining to Williamson’s anticipated return.

Far be it for a Hawks fan to tsk-tsk another team’s shifting sands when it comes to player injury and availability statuses. But the story on storyteller Griffin always feels the same, that he wraps his desired perception of being a straight-shooter around his mendacity as tightly as a pretzel around Combos cheese product. Don’t ask about Combos, Zion, you don’t wanna know.

Over at TNT, Stan Van Gundy was asked, during a media day for the network’s NBA broadcast teams, about the process that led him to return to the broadcast booth. “Well,” said SVG in trademark Van Gundy family fashion, “the first step for me wanting to get back into broadcasting was David Griffin firing me.” It’s sort of how David Blatt found himself reconsidering a career in European basketball coaching, after getting the rug yanked out from under him in mid-season while Griffin was “managing” the defending conference champion LeBronnaires in Ohio.

Van Gundy’s replacement, former Hawks’ Vet-Min wing Willie Green, was left to fill in a conspicuous gap in the Pelican starting lineup. Green likely wishes he had a few more Vet-Mins to turn to for assistance. Opening night featured veteran Josh Hart with the top unit, for roughly ten minutes, until the guard came down with quad tendinosis.

Willie G has since turned to rookies to supplant Hart (doubtful, as per himself, for today’s game). Namely, Tide-rolling second-rounder Herbert Jones (23.3 minutes/game, 2.0 PPG on 36.4 FG%) in the starting lineup, and mid-tiered first-rounder Trey Murphy (21.0 minutes/game, 41.2 3FG%) off the bench.

Seeing New Orleans lean so hard in the early going on Jones and Murphy, who impressed at times in preseason and training camp, surely raises the eyebrows of Atlanta newbies Jalen Johnson and Sharife Cooper. As for a far shallower roster, the brows on Tomas Satoransky (8.0 minutes/game, DNP’d for 2 games) and Willy Hernangomez (DNP’d through 4 games) may reside in the back of their heads.

The Olympic star for the Czech Republic, Satoransky was among several newcomers Griffin acquired to Etch-a-Sketch away other additions from recent Pelican seasons past. Free agent Lonzo Ball was signed-and-traded primarily for Sato and Garrett Temple. Starting point guard Devonte’ Graham and center Jonas Valanciunas arrived in NOLA via a multi-team deal that neatly dispatched Eric Bledsoe, Steven Adams and Wes Iwundu, along with a pair of conditional first-rounders.

While Graham has carte blanche to make the most of an expanded role since coming from LaMeloville, Satoransky struggled and got short hooks from Coach Green, in the home-opener versus Philly and in the rematch with Lonzo last Friday in Chi-town, and he hasn’t been seen on the court since.

Reportedly, Tomas played in the Bulls game despite suffering through a non-COVID illness, but he has not been listed on injury reports. I’ve seen no word on what the deal is with Hernangomez, who returned in free agency after appearing in 47 games for NOLA last season and starting during preseason games.

Also getting fewer minutes than the rooks, Temple, backup big Jaxson Hayes, forward Naji Marshall and the spry Kira Lewis, haven’t fared much better. The Pels bench has been responsible for a league-low 18.8 PPG, while committing 7.4 TOs/game (3^rd-most in NBA).

There’s not much help for Ingram, who averages an early career-best 27.0 PPG on a career-high 22.5 shot attempts per game (only 2.8 FTAs/game so far, so he may be getting the cold shoulder from refs, too), but who has turned the ball over about as much he makes successful dishes (4.3 TOs/game, 4.8 APG).

The rub is, Ingram and the regular starters were not supposed to be taxed this much, with the understanding that their franchise savior was merely a few days around the corner, and they were likely granted little time to prepare for an inestimable period without him. A more reliable source than Griffin, Green says Williamson is “progressing and doing more and more on the floor.” In the interim, Times-Picayune sportswriter Scott Kushner suggests the Pels (NBA-worst 19.9 TO%; 23.3 opp. PPG off TOs 2^nd-most in NBA) do what they can to slow the tempo down and simplify the offense.

Their one saving grace has been, at least for bad stretches, the Hawks’ bugaboo. Atlanta’s 77.8 D-Reb% sits impressively at fourth-best in the league following another slow-boil home victory, this one 122-104 on Monday at wayward Detroit’s expense. But that show has to go on the road, and the Pels (30.5 O-Reb%) hope to find exploitable size advantages, if not length, in the paint (39.0 team paint PPG, 2^nd-lowest in NBA) to catch and tip-out the off-kilter shots that are soon to come from teammates’ decently-contested shots.

That equates to a steady diet of Valanciunas (early career-high 15.0 RPG, 2^nd in NBA; early career-low 41.4 FG%), Jones, NAW, Hernangomez(?) and Hayes crashing the glass and, often, into their opponents in hopes of favorable whistles. Keeping starters John Collins (4.0 personal fouls/game, 2.0 posters/game), De’Andre Hunter, and Clint Capela on the court and out of foul trouble will require schemes that goad Valanciunas into taking open jumpers and hooks (5-for-22 FGs betw. 3-10 feet from rim, as per bball-ref) while boxing him and others out.

All hail Atlanta’s own, Anthony Edwards, who is becoming a national treasure during press conferences in only his second season of service with the once-undefeated Timberwolves. “Lock in. Lock the [Dellavedova] in!”, he implored of his associates, who let the Pelicans (1-3) sneak out of town on Monday with a 107-98 victory.

Valanciunas (22 points, 23 boards), Ingram and Nickeil Alexander-Walker ravaged Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns’ supporting cast, gaining a 60-41 rebounding edge. It was one that Minnesota could not narrow until it was too late. “Everybody coming in here thinking it’s sweet playing the Pelicans,” Edwards grumbled. “Whooped our [Paul Pierces]… We got to wake up!”

Ant-Man wasn’t crawling around criticism of himself and his star teammates, KAT and D’Angelo Russell, taking the Pelicans too lightly. “We can’t beat five people with three people,” Edwards warned, as he is well on his way to winning the sports media’s Yogi Berra Award. “We beat five people with five people!”

With Trae Young (NBA-high 47 career games with 25+ points and 10+ assists, tied with James Harden since 2018) leading the charge, coach Nate McMillan’s club (2-1) on Monday returned to a more balanced offensive approach predicated on proper off-ball motion and ball movement, although shooters on occasion will need to be encouraged to take the well-crafted open shots. Taking the Highlight & T-shirt Factory on the road is a big lug. But with greater adversaries on the horizon, including tomorrow night in D.C., a wannabe contender like the Hawks must learn to do some heavy lifting.

Griffin is as Griffin does, and that is serving as the Baghdad Bob for the NBA’s media scrums. No one embodies the saying, “There’s Nothing to See Here! All is Well!” better than Griff. But at some point, the fans at Smoothie King Center are going to want something genuinely worth seeing, lest they tread a few hours north up Interstate 55 to catch a glimpse at what 2019’s second-overall pick has been up to.

Where did all the hyped-up Zion fans go? “Who, us? Oh, we just went whitewater rafting, served a soup kitchen, hung out with some Grizzlies, made some beignets! We’ve just been so busy lately!”

 

Go 2-0, Bravos! And Let’s Go Hawks!

~lw3

[NBASupes]

I expect a good game. Pels play hard and with big Val, they execute well. They just don't play a modern game and they have a tougher time scoring in the paint than DET did. Atlanta should win this one by 20

[Spud2nique]

1 hour ago, lethalweapon3 said:

“Lock in. Lock the [Dellavedova] in!”,

 

1 hour ago, lethalweapon3 said:

“Whooped our [Paul Pierces]… We got to wake up!”

Squawk’s own language. 

Awesome as usual lw3! Griff haters (that’s you @kg01 ) collab!

Go Hawks! 
Go Braves!  

[Spud2nique]

2 minutes ago, NBASupes said:

Atlanta should win this one by 20

Wow 20? That’s a lot for the road. I mean we are definitely capable and no biggie Smalls tonight so..

it’s possible!

 

Line is :

 Hawks -5.5 o/u 219.5

[terrell]

De'Andre Hunter is available tonight, Nate McMillan says. Danilo Gallinari is also available, for the first time this season. Lou Williams is out.

[terrell]

Sarah K. Spencer

 

Nate McMillan on getting Gallo back: "The other thing is just to get a look at our second unit... He hasn't played with Cam, he hasn't played with Kevin, he hasn't played with Delon and Gorgui, so now we've got to work on that chemistry with that rotation."

[RandomFan]

Zion on the bench wearing a suit? It really is the 2nd coming of Anthony Davis's tenure in Nawlins. 

[JayBirdHawk]

11 minutes ago, RandomFan said:

Zion on the bench wearing a suit? It really is the 2nd coming of Anthony Davis's tenure in Nawlins. 

I saw a rumor that Zion had the surgery without the teams knowledge? Wow if true.

[Spud2nique]

  3 and 1 (3-1) here we come  

Poet and I don’t know it. 

GO HAWKS!!!! Make Zion’s inner thighs sweat! 

[Dnice]

They gave Lou off for his birthday..enjoy.

 

[RandomFan]

So are we stuck with Doris Burke tonight, or does the ATL feed still have Bob? Need to know before I go looking for a different stream. 

[TheNorthCydeRises]

Glad to see Gallo back.  He'll help to keep Knife on the bench ( hopefully ).

Valanciunas has traditionally been a Hawks killer.  Having Dieng as a big body to use, in Capela gets in foul trouble, is nice to have.

I do expect the Hawks to pull away in this one, but we can't go down big early.  Big, as in 8 - 15 points.  IF we start out great, this game may be over early.

Graham is the wild card tonight.  He has the ability to match Trae point for point.  He also has the ability to shoot them right out the game.

 

[Carmine]

No Zion...  let's eat!

[terrell]

Capela missing bunnies......

[TheNorthCydeRises]

LOL . . of course.  Pelicans red hot.

[RandomFan]

Welp, if they are gonna shoot 100% then we might be in trouble...lol

[TheNorthCydeRises]

Doris lapping up Trae. 

She likes us.

[Dnice]

Sheet a career day for Ingram.

[JayBirdHawk]

We might wanna guard the 3pt line?

[GameTime]

1 minute ago, TheNorthCydeRises said:

Doris lapping up Trae. 

She likes us.

Everybody loves Trae now. Where were they 3 years ago when he was a 'bust'?