No one wants the NBA season to be cancelled, but it might not be the worst thing for the New Orleans Pelicans to shut things down.
When you are a young team like the New Orleans Pelicans, time is on your side, especially this season, when the best player on the team still isn’t old enough to buy a beer.
There is a growing consensus among NBA executives that the season should be cancelled so the NBA can focus on next season amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
But there is a second group, now being led by LeBron James, that wants no part of a cancellation and thinks the NBA should resume whenever they can:
https://twitter.com/KingJames/status/1255912096929165312
This makes sense for Lebron. He’s in his 17th season and is basically playing for the playoffs and titles at this point. He doesn’t want to lose a season and I can’t blame him.
It really makes sense for most of the players, who stand to lose a lot of money if the season is cancelled. According to Adrian Wojnarowski:
ESPN Sources: The NBA and NBPA have agreed on the withholding of 25 percent of each player paycheck beginning on May 15. Deal gives gradual reduction in salary should Force Majeure provision be enacted with cancellation of regular season games. May 1 checks will be paid in full.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) April 17, 2020
We’re not worried that any of these millionaires are going to starve, but losing a big chunk of your pay will get your attention fast.
There is plenty of motivation for veteran players to not lose a season and for all players to not lose a paycheck.
The New Orleans Pelicans are in a different situation. They are an incredibly young team who doesn’t really have any players in the midst of their retirement tours.
They were clawing their way into a potential playoff spot, but were still on the outside looking in, and there is a chance they would have been watching by this point anyway.
In other words, there may not be much to gain for the New Orleans Pelicans if the season does resume, which is why a cancellation may be the best thing for the franchise.
Let’s take a look at how a cancellation would benefit the New Orleans Pelicans, as well as why it would be the worst possible outcome.
Cancelling the Season Benefits the New Orleans Pelicans
As a fan, there is no way I want to see the season cancelled. We at Pelican Debrief have continued coverage of the team even when there aren’t games, so we’d like the reward of watching this season play out.
But if I owned the team I might feel differently, here’s why.
The Pelicans Were Never Really Healthy
The “Big 3” of the New Orleans Pelicans is Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram and Lonzo Ball, three guys with spotty injury histories.
Lonzo has been injured or beat up heading into the offseason every year he’s been in the league. It would be nice for him to finish a season healthy and have a full offseason to work on his game without having to overcome an injury.
Ingram is still overcoming a serious health issue related to a blood clot and even though he’s made a full recovery, it’s something to be concerned about.
Zion missed most of the season with a knee injury and never looked to be 100 percent.
Anyone who says they didn’t wince every time Zion went down or landed funny is lying. Zion was limping all over the place, especially in the games leading up to the hiatus.
Missing the season cost Zion his conditioning and it showed, as he looked fatigued late in games and had a more pronounced limp.
It wouldn’t be the worst thing if he had a long offseason to fully recover and not risk re-injuring that knee. If the season were to resume and Zion got hurt again would it be worth it?
The New Orleans Pelicans Will Get Stronger
The Pelicans are a young team that lacks physical strength, which was evident by the way LeBron went through them like they weren’t there.
Jaxson Hayes, Ingram, Ball and even Zion can get much stronger with another offseason program of workouts and weights. Look at the way the Michael Jordan-era Bulls had to put in the time in the weight room before they were able to overcome the stronger Pistons.
If the New Orleans Pelicans want to contend in the West, they have to get stronger so teams cannot push them around in the paint, where they are 28th in the NBA in points allowed.
Big wings were especially difficult for the Pels to stop and a cancellation would give them more time to beef up and prepare.
The Pelicans Need to Build Chemistry
The New Orleans Pelicans only had 19 games with their full team and it showed at times. Though Lonzo and Zion had started to develop a nice two-man game, the rest of the team was still trying to adjust, especially Ingram, who had become the Alpha scorer in Zion’s absence.
A longer offseason means more film, more study and more time to figure out how the pieces work.
As a pragmatist, this makes sense, but as a basketball fan, cancellation is the last thing I want.
A Cancelled Season Would Not Benefit the New Orleans Pelicans
Strictly from a fan’s point of view, the last thing I want is a cancelled season. The NBA playoffs are the best thing in sports and a loss of even one of them wouldn’t be good for fans.
Obviously fans want to get things going as soon as it’s safe, but there are some compelling reasons for the players to want the same and it’s not all about the potential for lost wages.
The Pelicans are Missing Out on Pressure Reps
Even if the New Orleans Pelicans didn’t make the playoffs this season, they’d still get reps in pressure-filled situations, which can only benefit them in the future.
Most of the team hasn’t been a part of a playoff push, where every game matters and has a playoff atmosphere. The Pelicans would have gotten some of the experience they will need if they want to knock off teams like the Lakers.
It took the Bulls three tries to finally beat the Pistons and losing in the playoffs was part of that. If the season is cancelled, the Pelicans won’t take that necessary first step to winning a title.
Playing Builds Chemistry Too
Chemistry is built by playing together, not just studying film or practicing. The New Orleans Pelicans were just beginning to scratch the surface of their talent and chemistry as a unit and they need more time.
Game situations are tough to simulate and no amount of film study or practice can replace the experience of playing together in actual games. Even if the Pels had come up short in their quest, they would have gotten more time and reps together in real games.
If the season is cancelled, their growth as a team will be set back.
What about the Veterans?
There are guys on the New Orleans Pelicans who may not be on the team next season, which means this was their last chance to make it work in the Big Easy.
Guys like Derrick Favors were vital to the success of the Pelicans and may not get a chance to finish what they started. This is true of E’Twaun Moore and even J.J. Redick, who isn’t in his last year, but may end up traded at some point.
Forget Money, Basketball is Fun
I know teams are worried about budget and lost revenue, but let’s not forget the point is entertainment. The New Orleans Pelicans were already one of the most fun teams in the league to watch and we were due for an exciting finish.
If they did make the playoffs, the LeBron vs. Zion series would have been one of the all-time most hyped first round series and would have undoubtedly provided nightly highlights.
Potentially getting denied that series is a bummer from a fan’s perspective, especially when you consider the New Orleans Pelicans were trying to take the first baby steps towards a dynasty.
A cancelled season may be better for bodies, but not for fans and the player’s ultimate development.
This has been the wildest NBA season in history and may get more so as the league decides between some ending to this season or a full cancellation.
Thanks for reading and stay safe out there!