Pelicans 2016 Presser

[NickMalone77]

Media Day

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I'd like to start off by congratulating the Indiana Pacers on being the very best opponent we could possibly face. Deron Williams made us look like idiots for much of that finals but somehow, we prevailed.

You never forget your first.

You never forget all the memories. You never forget all the terrible trades. You never forget the negativity but it's the joy and gratitude of what this game does to you that puts this all into perspective.

You remember also the legends. This title was for you Gugs. For you Mookie. For you Baron Davis. For you ZBo. For you Antwan Jamison. Even for you Manute Bol and you Patrick Ewing.

You remember their achievements and accolades. You remember their struggles that paved the way for Blake and Dame. The hugs. The happiness. The Hennessy.

Some memories are better than others but you never forget where you came from so you can celebrate what made you who you are to this day and what you hope to become so you can leave it better for the next generation of Pelicans.

Ramblings. Sure. But.... Frye it. If you're passionate about something, you'll do everything in your power to make that journey worth it.

Thank you, Ron Artest, for making sure your one last jog to glory gave the proud people of New Orleans a championship they can cherish forever. We hope your limitless talents lead Charlotte to the playoffs in the next season ahead.

Moving forward...

After the most recent playoffs Dame had, he was worth every penny he got in his new contract. It was because of his scoring burst in Game 7 against Indy that won us our Title. When he signed that offer sheet with the Clippers, we wasted little time in bringing him back. He took the time in the offseason to upgrade himself and his scoring talent that much more. Ever since we drafted him, we knew he would turn into one of the best guards in the league and we are excited to see that transition finally take place.

Bringing Damian Lillard back left us over the cap and could only offer vet min contracts. But the funny thing is when you win a title, the vets all want to play for you. So we had a boatload of guys come down to the Batou and work for the opportunity to play with us. We let TC operate and attempt to do its worst while weeding out the competition. Those that advanced featured Tony Snell, Gerald Henderson, Kosta Koufos, and returning for another stint, Zaza Pachulia.

Our core is our family. We work as one and we succeed as one. We lose as one too. All playing for the same goals. If anything, winning that championship only made us even more determined to get another one under our wings. We know the challenges at the two guard ahead and we will see what fits best.

Our team practically dealt with an injury to a different Pelican member last year. Greg Monroe was the lone starter of the group last year to play a full season. Maybe it's made us more conservative in our approach but the seeds of our labor brought us a title last year. Let the quest for #2 begin.

[NOLa.]

First you defeated my team in the first round due to solid defense, but what happened next was a special run.

You beat the Clippers with Durant. Then you beat the Suns with Love. Finally, you defeated the Pacers with Deron. 3 players that I believe were the best at each of their respective positions. How did this happen?


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[false9]

How concerned are you about a "championship hangover" this season?

[RPF]

Chris Christie, Star-Ledger: How does it feel to go from chasing a title to defending your title? Any concerns that you won't get a banner to showcase?

[Bowtothebill23]

How concerned are you about the departure of Ron Artest. As a podcast brought up, your team caught absolute fire when you traded for him, going 23-5 in the regular season and winning a championship. Was he a glue guy that brought everyone together? Or was he simply another 3 and D guy that can be repalced?

[logpmess]

Where do you see yourself finishing in your division and conference this season?

[Xist2Inspire]

Tobias Harris has quietly grown into a solid all-around player. With the departure of Ron Artest and the new pressure of defending a title, what are you expecting from him this season?

[NickMalone77]

First you defeated my team in the first round due to solid defense, but what happened next was a special run.

You beat the Clippers with Durant. Then you beat the Suns with Love. Finally, you defeated the Pacers with Deron. 3 players that I believe were the best at each of their respective positions. How did this happen?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

As I've come to learn, teams with OPs are so too heavy that the majority of the usage from those teams is sucked up by that one player. You know they're gonna get theres in most capacity but if you can slow down the corresponding parts, you have a chance. It's impossible to do that during the regular season but in the playoffs, I definitely think you can try to slow down that dominant force.

If you have a player like a KLove or Deron and you have a guy like Brook or Lillard, they won't equal the output of what the opponent might put up but they can be very close. Winning Game 7 in LA, gave this team the confidence that they could win anything. Facing the Suns who didn't have a pg to guard Lillard, we liked our chances. Then being down 0-2 to Indy, this team never gave up. It was a rollercoaster all playoffs long but this team believed in each other and the results thankfully reaped that belief.

[NickMalone77]

How concerned are you about a "championship hangover" this season?

A little. Not having Artest to complete the starting 5 this year will be a challenge but the gains to Harris, Lillard, and Monroe, will be up for it. I think this team can still be able to defend the crown even as the Western conference got a lot tougher this past offseason ahead.

[NickMalone77]

Chris Christie, Star-Ledger: How does it feel to go from chasing a title to defending your title? Any concerns that you won't get a banner to showcase?

It definitely changes you. You put all this time and effort to chasing it and then when you finally earn it, it's definitely a gratifying and satisfying feeling. It still makes me hungry though to earn #2 which begins when the season starts.

I'm still waiting on the league office for those sweet banners so I can show them off with great pride.

[NickMalone77]

How concerned are you about the departure of Ron Artest. As a podcast brought up, your team caught absolute fire when you traded for him, going 23-5 in the regular season and winning a championship. Was he a glue guy that brought everyone together? Or was he simply another 3 and D guy that can be repalced?

Last year, it felt like we went through every sim where somebody went down with an injury. That combined with the difficult schedule in the first half of the year definitely made our team battle tested. Then Ron came in and with his background and intelligence and defensive skill, he definitely brought a toughness to this team that they'll definitely miss.

Also I think bringing in someone who won a title before was important to our team to never give up when things got tough. He will definitely be missed. But I also think that the talent of our team overall will still be a tough team to matchup against on a nightly basis. That's why the gains to Monroe and Harris were so important to this team during TC. You can't double Blake and Lillard all the time and you need those clutch buckets from harris and Monroe to alleviate the pressure. I think we have enough depth that we can overcome the loss of Artest but our phones are also always open to working something out of it fits and benefits our team for the short and long term.

[NickMalone77]

Where do you see yourself finishing in your division and conference this season?

I definitely think we can compete amongst the best of the Western Conference again. I feel confident about our chances again to win the Southwest division.

[NickMalone77]

Tobias Harris has quietly grown into a solid all-around player. With the departure of Ron Artest and the new pressure of defending a title, what are you expecting from him this season?

The thing about Tobias is that he does every little thing well. When you need him to score a bucket, he does. When you need him to defend and rebound against a larger guy, and with his speed, he does. We've long loved his versatility and he had been a target of ours for a while. We are happy to see how hard he's worked to improve his game at the next level.

[digiskunk]

What do you think your biggest challenges are heading forward?

[NickMalone77]

What do you think your biggest challenges are heading forward?

Probably facing the Warriors, Nuggets, and finding another parade route that isn't typical down Bourbon Street for Championship #2.

[digiskunk]

What do you think your biggest challenges are heading forward?

Probably facing the Warriors, Nuggets, and finding another parade route that isn't typical down Bourbon Street for Championship #2.

Don't worry — I'll take care of the ButtNuggets for ya.

[garbageman]

Sham Smith, Bulls.com: I think last year, you had a very understated team that was much better than people gave it credit for until it became apparent that the Pelicans were the real deal. With the target on your back, does that change your gameplan at all?

[NickMalone77]

Sham Smith, Bulls.com: I think last year, you had a very understated team that was much better than people gave it credit for until it became apparent that the Pelicans were the real deal. With the target on your back, does that change your gameplan at all?

Not necessarily. We are perfectly content laying in the weeds while the pundits pontificate preseason champ favorites like the Warriors and Nuggets. Of course, they made moves to vastly improve their teams but no team ever won a title in July-August.