New Orleans Pelicans: Final Grades for Every Player in the Bubble

New Orleans Pelicans: Grade for the coaching.

The Coach

There wasn’t much to like about Alvin Gentry’s performance in the bubble.

His team didn’t show up, play hard, play any defense and by the end of it, it looked like he had lost them.

I give him credit for pulling some of the Pelicans who weren’t performing, but it was always too little, too late.

Gentry has an annoying habit of refusing to call a timeout when his team is getting steamrolled, often letting the lead get well into the double digits before doing anything.

You can’t do this with a young team. Juxtapose this against Greg Popovich, who three times called a timeout when the Pelicans scored five straight points, set up a play and got his team a good shot out of the timeout.

Gentry on the other hand, stood with his hands in his pockets most of the time, until he did this, effectively ending his own team’s comeback:

Gentry may have a future with the Pelicans in some capacity, but it probably won’t be as the head coach.

He’s done a lot of good in New Orleans, been a great role model and leader, but he is just not getting enough out of his talent, and his teams continue to make the same mistakes over and over again.

The Pelicans turned the ball over too much, allowed wide open shots, points in the paint and fast break points, which they have all season.

Changes are going to be made, probably at the top, and the Pelicans need to rebuild parts of their bench, but overall it was an exciting season for a young team who is on the cusp.