Bourbon Street Debrief: Post and Past ASG Q&A with Jesse Brooks

The good times at the Pelican Debrief continue as the second half of the NBA season approaches. In the spirit of the All-Star break, we thought we would reminisce a little and ask some fun Pelicans questions. Jesse Brooks of Bourbon Street Shots was kind enough to join us. Jesse is an established writer and is also a Louisiana Press Association Award-winner. Enjoy what should be a fun journey as we celebrate and relate past and present Pelicans all-star history.

1. Jesse, you have had the privilege to watch and write about the Pelicans for many years now. With the All-Star break coming to a close, what is your favorite Pelicans related All-Star game memory?

Of all time, I would have to say that my favorite New Orleans All-Star memory would be when the city hosted the event for the first time ever in 2008. The Hornets were back for good since the temporary relocation in OKC after Hurricane Katrina, and David West and Chris Paul were All-Stars. It was also the first major sporting event the city had hosted since the storm. The local representation in the pre-game setup was impressive, and halftime was all New Orleans musicians. I felt a lot of pride that night and it made an impression on me watching on television. Beyond that weekend, that ended up being the best season we’ve ever had.

In the Anthony Davis era, I’d have to say I was very proud of seeing him named MVP of last year’s game. Oh, and snagging DeMarcus Cousins in old fashion Big Easy hustle job during the final hours was pretty cool too.

2. We’ve watched Chris Paul be an All-Star during the prime of his career in NOLA. We’ve also watched Anthony Davis unicorn his way to numerous All-Star appearances. If you had to be stuck with one for the rest of their career, are you taking prime CP3 or AD and why?

That’s one of the toughest opinion questions I’ve ever been asked. For a while now, many have said that Paul may be the best pure point guard of all time when it’s said and done. When you’re in conversations about Davis, the constant theme of the conversation seems to be “potential” greatness.

I think for a long time I would have chosen Paul for his tough character sheer hatred of losing, but the fact remains that he still has yet to appear in a conference championship. He may this season with Houston but I feel, with a prime-era Paul, we know what his strengths and weaknesses are.

In the case of present-day Davis, he is currently shattering records and putting up video game numbers. Having said that, he’s only 24 and I still believe there is still room for Davis to grow as a player. I think we still don’t know how the Davis of today will respond to being put in certain situations, but we do know the possibilities are endless.

Davis appears to me as the NBA’s best power forward, and it’s not even close! When it’s all said and done, he may be the greatest of all time in that position. How will he compare to all of the league’s greatest players in the end? I don’t think any of us have a clue, yet his projection is positive.

I’ll take present-day AD because I’m a bit of a gambler.

3. Name a drafted Pelicans player that you thought had the best odds of being an All-Star that never made it.

Initially, I had very high hopes for Marcus Thornton coming out of LSU. I followed his career closely when he was in college and he was just an exciting player to watch and he seemed to ball out with a lot of confidence. I can remember his 37-point game against Cleveland and how he had no problem launching shots in LeBron James‘s face.

I can remember agreeing with the circumstances when he was traded to Sacramento but was sad to see him go. I think his playing style didn’t fit with Monty Williams’s controlled environment and it affected his game. He was a streaky scorer kind of like J.R. Smith.

4. Which former veteran All-Star were you most excited to watch play; Jamal Mashburn or Peja Stojakovic?

Before New Orleans got a team my favorite NBA player was Vince Carter. While I was growing up we were transitioning from MJ to powerful guys with a strong handle, mid-range game, and killer slams. Mashburn was that guy and it was a lot of fun. I remember him having a 50-point game against Memphis.

But the nights where Peja couldn’t miss were fun too. The big three of Paul, David West, and Peja was something to watch.

5. In the second half of the season, the New Orleans Pelicans will ______. They will finish ____ in the Western Conference.

I have hopes the current core with Nikola Mirotic will go on a run and scratch and claw their way to finishing seventh in the West.

Next: The New Orleans Pelicans road to the playoffs: Five must watch games

And that was our time with Jesse Brooks. You can follow him on Twitter @jessecbrooks and the rest of the Bourbon Street Shots family @BourbonStShots. Stay tuned for our next adventure coming soon where we talk with Kevin Barrios from The Bird Writes.