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Observations from the New Orleans Pelicans Preseason Game vs. Chicago Bulls

ByMatt Cianfrone|

For many people Monday night’s contest against the Chicago Bulls was the first time that they were able to see Alvin Gentry’s new look New Orleans Pelicans. Unfortunately lingering injuries to Norris Cole and Eric Gordon forced them to join Alexis Ajinca, Omer Asik and Quincy Pondexter on the sidelines making the contest in Chicago more of a viewing of Anthony Davis, a few rotation players and the end of the roster hopefuls like Corey Webster, Chris Douglas-Roberts and Sean Kilpatrick. That didn’t stop New Orleans from competing though as after a tough first half that saw them down 12 at halftime they battled back to take a fourth quarter lead behind Tyreke Evans, Anthony Davis and Ryan Anderson and ultimately won 123-115. While there was plenty going on a few things stood out to our staff, below are our observations from the contest.

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Chris (@ChrisBarnewall):

CDR’s hair is amazing. (Editor’s note: Chris is wrong about this. And CDR)

Matt (@Matt_Cianfrone):

Ryan Anderson making everything from beyond the arc is really nice to see. It isn’t that Anderson is a shooter you have to worry about but after how weird things got with him on the road last year the more shots that fall early the better. It just adds a dimension to this offense that no other player can.
Sign me up for Babbitt/Anderson minutes early in the season. With everyone hurt the Pelicans are going to need to get creative with lineups and combining those two gives the Pelicans some incredible shooting and spacing possibilities. The defense will be a tire fire but at least it will be fun and Babbitt has earned minutes.
Anthony Davis feels like he is never going to miss in this offense. So far the Pelicans have done a great job of screening for AD early in possessions so that he is constantly going to set screens while already having a few steps on his defender. With that happening the defense has no chance and AD is taking advantage.
Sean Kilpatrick played pretty well. He was under control, knocked in shots and pushed the pace constantly. With the word of Cole’s injury coming shortly before the game started it isn’t hard to think about Kilpatrick making the roster to start the season.
CDR was awful. He constantly got beat on the perimeter both off the dribble and on cuts. It was so bad that it made him look like he wasn’t an NBA player.
Turns out that Bryce Dejean-Jones still exists. Who knew?
Tyreke Evans was great in the third quarter. He played under control, attacked the basket, knocked down a few jumpers and got teammates involved. He seems poised for a big year in the new system.
Evans, Alonzo Gee, Sean Kilpatrick and Jrue Holiday all saw some action in the post on Monday. Looks like it won’t just be an Evans thing.
The thing that really stood out tonight was the amount of switching on defense and how it went relatively smoothly as the Pelicans got comfortable in the game. One sequence that really stood out happened in the third quarter when Tyreke Evans’ man made a cut from the left corner towards the middle of the floor and eventually up to the top of the arc. Evans communicated with Dante Cunningham whose man was in the right corner and switched so smoothly that Cunningham was in position to deny the pass. Douglas-Roberts got a steal on the play but the communication and seamless switch from Evans and Cunningham was the best and most important part of the play. If New Orleans is going to switch often as they claim, those plays are the ones that need to be perfect.

Nathan (@NathanHeck22):

My obligatory thought on Anthony Davis won’t involve him shooting threes (unless this mention counts). Instead, I found his insanely slick dish to Cunningham super impressive. Davis needs to keep improving his passing ability, and that definitely was a start.
The Pelicans need Omer Asik. Without the lumbering Turk, the Bulls had their way on the boards, and that is a recipe for failure.
CDR needs to be cut. Now.
Tyreke looked dominant in the third quarter. At one point Davis passed the ball to Reke on the break, and instead of forcing his way through the defense for a contested layup, he circled back out and took his man off the dribble. If Gentry can keep Reke playing intelligent like that, the Pelicans will be in business.
On the other hand, Tyreke Evans took a step inside the arc with no one around to take a very long two. He needs to stay beyond the line in that situation.
The ball movement during the rally was amazing. Everyone was getting good looks because of the ball movement. Bye Monty, your offense will not be missed.
The defense looked downright atrocious at points, but it should, inherently, improve when the talent returns to the lineup. The offense looked great at points despite who was on the floor. The second half really got me excited for the upcoming season.

Charles (@CLaRoccaJR):

Anthony Davis looked great and as a result anytime he was on the floor the offense did as well. The times he wasn’t however the entire team looked a bit lost. The defense continually blew assignments and the flow of the offense slowed down significantly. This was mostly due to a CDR and Corey Webster led backcourt. After Kilpatrick assumed lead guard duties the offensive tempo picked back up and looked more fluid.
Jrue Holiday for the third straight game looked good in his 10 minutes. He played with a ton of energy and attacked the basket more often than usual. Gentry even utilized him in the post showcasing his versatility.
Out of the on the bubble guys , Kilpatrick looked the best tonight and while Dejean Jones had a few brief moments , such as a steal and finish his impact was minimal at best. Corey Webster continues to just fade away in the background on the floor while Jeff Adrien did not play tonight, so the edge has to go to Kilpatrick in that battle.

Next: The Cole News From Right Before the Game

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