ClutchFans Game Thread: Pelicans @ Rockets 11/10/2023

It has been a long time since we can say we are only 1/2 game from San Francisco Warriors after 8 games. How about this game thread blowing up to 82 freaking pages against the Pelicans probaly all-time high. Last year we maybe lucky to get 25 because some of you are really fanatics.

 

Easy peasy......I found the Silas era amusing, tanking was not fun but it yielded results.

Tanking memes FTW.

 

Rockets actually look good!

 

Riding the optimism while I can--A small point regarding our offense:

If we can regularly threaten to have three guys with 20 point games (Jalen, Alpi, and Fred) would our offense actually be that bad?

A team I keep coming back to as a point of comparison for what we're trying to build is the 2008 Boston Celtics. Here was their starting five:

Rajon Rondo 10.6pts / 5.1ast / 4.2rb / .515 TS%
Ray Allen 17.4pts / 3.1ast / 3.7rb / .584 TS%
Paul Pierce 19.6pts / 4.5ast / 5.1rb / .599 TS%
Kevin Garnett 18.8pts / 3.4ast / 9.2rb / .588 TS%
Kendrick Perkins 6.9pts / 1.1ast / 6.1rb / .632 TS%

Now, do I think we're even close to being a championship contender yet? No. Our scoring efficiency (except maybe Sengun's) won't be anywhere close to what we're talking about with the '08 Celtics. We don't have the reliable catch-and-shoot guys they did surrounding their core. Our defense will regress at least a little bit. There's also too little playoff experience on this roster.

That said, I do think it might be sustainable to have all three of our main offensive engines scoring 18+ points per game on decent efficiency. That would be FVV's norm the last few years and I believe Alpi in particular can sustain that level. Jalen, I have more doubts about on the efficiency front--it's all about the jump shot for him. If he can take better shots and knock down more of them, then sure, he can have average-or-better efficiency, and he's already proven he can be a 20 point scorer.

Food for thought.

 

Harden: “I’m not a part of the problem. I’m the whole problem.”

 

You have League Pass, right? Watch the game this weekend, or at least watch the fourth quarter. The action was crazy.

 

Silas would have parked Fred in the corner and brought Brooks off the bench for “matchups.” Silas was horribly terrible.

 

lol. he said it had a "fake playoff game" feel to it

 

Last night and this 5 game winning streak has to be devastating for @YOLO though he’ll probably deny it.

Here is what he calls “cheap defensive antics”:



Dillon “Bricks” as he calls him is shooting 55.6% FG, 55.6% 3PT

 

Some dude on mavs broadcast team I believe

 

Brooks is exactly what this team needed. We haven't had a bulldog like him since Patrick Beverly and it has been missed. (No offense to Tate who comes pretty close!)

 

We have a few guys now playing with that mentality, and it's been a long time coming. I love it! The puppies are growing into bulldogs, thanks to guys like Dillon, Fred, and Jeff.

 

Enjoyed the game again last night. Sengun and Green doing great through struggles, Dillon and Fred brought it home. Behind the back dunk by Sengun was play of the night for me. Last year we'd have given up once we lost the lead and got blown out. The influence of the vets on our budding young stars is really setting us apart.

 

They got out rebounded 49-42. Not destroyed.
We actually had 1 more off rebound than the Pelicans had.

You say, again.
We out rebounded the Lakers 57-34 in our previous game, so I have no idea what your talking about.

 

Yeah somebody else told me that. I missed hearing that.

 

P.J. Tuck was a bit like that, but Dillon is more skilled with the ball.

 

eyo eyo eyo!

 

we’re still waiting for Bill Simmons to be super-fun to listen to…

 

Ingram did make 2-3 long range bombs.....that is how Pels were up till the last 3 minutes.