On Saturday night, the Golden State Warriors finished off a sweep of the New Orleans Pelicans in the first round of the 2015 NBA playoffs. “Splash Brothers” Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson continued their crazy series combining for 64 points in their 109-98 victory over New Orleans. Anthony Davis had 36 points and 11 rebounds, closing out his incredible third NBA season. Eric Gordon had 29 points as well.
One may look at this sweep and just assume the Pelicans had no chance and weren’t in any game. That is false. This Pelicans team fought back to make it close in game one after a large early deficit. They had a 13 point lead in game two, and only trailed by two with about two minutes left. In game three, New Orleans had the game won. They were up by 20 going in to the 4th quarter, and were up 17 with six minutes left, but Golden State pulled off a miraculous win to really shift the series in their favor. In game 4, the Pelicans fought back late to make it a ten point game with seven minutes left. They fought in every game, just like they fought all year.
Throughout the year, the Pelicans played without key players. MVP candidate Anthony Davis missed 14 games, starting point guard Jrue Holiday missed 42, key bench scorer Ryan Anderson missed 21 games, star scorer Tyreke Evans missed three games, but played through injuries all year, and Eric gordon, who the Pelicans got in the trade for franchise player Chris Paul, missed 21 games. As you can see, the Pelicans were almost never fully healthy.
With these key injuries, no one throught the Pelicans had a chance to get that 8th seed in the ultra competitive Western Conference. I mean how ccould an inexperienced, injury riddled team even compete with the Oklahoma City Thunder and mega superstar Russell Westbrook? Well, the Pelicans did it. They made several acquisitions that played very key to their playoff run.
An in-season signing of Dante Cunningham, who played great defense and provided a needed toughness for New Orleans. Trading struggling prospect Austin Rivers for Quincy Pondexter gave the Pelicans an experienced scorer and defender who without him, the Pelicans may not have made the playoffs. Perhaps the most underrated move at the trade deadline was the trade for two time champion Norris Cole, who gave the Pelicans key minutes and experience while Jrue Holiday was out. Contributions from the whole roster from players like Alexis Ajinca, Omer Asik, Luke Babbitt and more played a big part in the Pelicans’ success.
With two weeks left, the Pelicans stood three games behind the Thunder for the West’s 8th seed. They won a game against these same Warriors, and in a must win regular season finale, the Pelicans beat the defending champion San Antonio Spurs, at full strentgh, in order to get in to the playoffs. They played theire way in. No one gave them their 8th seed.
It was a magical season, and I as a fan I couldn’t be prouder of the Pelicans. No one believed in them all year, and still no one thought they’d even fight with the Warriors once they got in the playoffs. They proved people wrong. Anthony Davis is only 22, and will only get better. This is a young team that might be ready for an even better season next year. For now, it’s time to enjoy an amazing season in New Orleans, in which the city finally got behind the team, making an incredible post-season environment. Congratulations Pelicans!