Let’s state the obvious from the jump: the NBA desperately wants a Lakers-Pelicans playoff series. It knows the headlines and ratings the matchup would draw and doesn’t care if we know it. And truthfully, I’m here for it.
Old School vs. New School
The most marketable story will be LeBron James vs. Zion Williamson. LeBron is the league’s best player and Zion is the league’s best rookie. (Don’t worry Grizzlies fans, ROY is Ja Morant’s to lose). But unlike Morant, the 2019 No. 1 overall pick Williamson was the most coveted draft prospect since LeBron, and he’s lived up to hype thus far.
Zion averaged 23.6 points and 6.8 rebounds in his first 19 career games. This on nearly 60 percent shooting and in slightly under 30 minutes a game. Yeah—he’s that good. Compare those numbers to LeBron’s rookie output of 21 points, 5.5 assists and six rebounds a game. The king did it over 79 games, however.
Still, the comparison comes much from the two respective player’s incredible size, athleticism and dominance at a young age. LeBron was 6-foot-8 and 240 pounds coming out of high school. Zion was 6-foot-7 and 285 pounds after a season at Duke. Both players can jump through the roof as well. Two players with their abilities and popularity will garner so much attention, and rightfully so.
LeBron dropped 40 points and snatched eight rebounds in the Lakers-Pelicans Feb. 25 meeting, the first time James and Williamson faced off. Zion finished with an impressive 29 points and six rebounds. The second time around, Zion recorded a career-high 35 points and added seven boards. Bron countered that monstrous stat line with his own, however, posting 34 points, 13 assists and 12 rebounds. The Lakers won both of those games, for the record.
We won’t hear a crowd rise to its feet when the two stars get matched up in the half court. But the high-flying, thunderous dunks and chase down blocks will be plentiful, regardless.
But should New Orleans meet LA in the postseason, Zion likely won’t be the Pelicans player coming into the series with a chip on his shoulder. That’ll be the three former Lakers: Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram and Josh Hart.
Revenge for former Lakers
Pelicans General Manager David Griffin acquired the trio of young talent last summer in a blockbuster trade that sent superstar big man Anthony Davis to Hollywood (we’ll discuss him in a bit). Sure, LeBron traded BI, Zo and Hart because he runs every team he’s on and blah, blah, blah. But the trade was good for both sides, and it’s evident in the numbers.
Let’s start with Ingram, the No. 2 overall pick in 2016. He was never fully given the keys to the car in LA, and just as he began to show some glimpses of a star-in-the-making during the 2017-18 season, LeBron would sign with the Lakers that summer. Inevitably changing the outlook of a rebuilding team to a win-now one.
A change of scenery served Ingram well, however. He averaged 24.3 points, 6.3 assists and 4.3 rebounds a game prior to the shutdown—all career highs. He was also selected to his first All-Star Game in the talent-abundant Western Conference.
The fourth-year wing dropped a career-high 49 points on the Utah Jazz in mid-January, too. Imagine him giving LeBron a 40-piece in the playoffs. It could happen. The 6-foot-7, two-way Ingram has elevated his play so much that he could win the NBA’s Most Improved Player award this year, as well.
Despite the Pelicans crawling to an abysmal 7-22 start this season, Ingram had a chance to prove himself. And he has, and so has Lonzo Ball.
A former No. 2 overall pick in 2017, Ball was very touted coming out of UCLA after his freshman season. A premier ball handler, passer, playmaker and defender, the only doubts were about Ball’s then-funky release.
Still, Magic Johnson loved what he saw in the 6-foot-6 point guard so much that he traded D’Angelo Russell to the Brooklyn Nets to clear the lead guard role for him. And just like Ingram, Zo showed glimpses of a future star with the purple and gold. But just like Ingram, Zo never fully got the keys to car because then head coach, Luke Walton, preferred to give more minutes to Rajon Rondo rather than developing Ball.
But once Ball landed in New Orleans, Alvin Gentry’s coaching staff surgically reconstructed the guard’s shooting form and the difference is noticeable.
Zo was knocking down 38 percent of his 6.5 attempts from beyond the arc this season. That’s 2.5 made threes a game, up from 1.6 makes on 4.9 attempts in the previous season. But shooting aside, the Chino Hills native continues to thrive as a playmaker and is an all-league defender in the making.
Spending the duration of his NBA tenure playing for his hometown Lakers would likely have been a dream come true for Ball. He would’ve flourished with the current LA team, too. But now, he has no pressure from playing with a LeBron and also has the ball in hands more. Not that he needs it to be effective.
The same can be said for Josh Hart who was a productive rotation player for the Lakers in his two years with them. He averaged about eight points and four rebounds in around 24 minutes a game under Walton. But with the Pelicans, his numbers are up to 10.2 points and 6.5 rebounds in 27 minutes a game.
And if you’ve watched Hart play, you know he’s one of the best rebounding guards in the NBA. An active slasher and strong finisher at the rim, Hart also holds his own when guarding players bigger than him. The Villanova alum stands at 6-foot-5 and 215 pounds.
But let’s not forget, Hart took a shot at the Lakers in Sept. 2019 during his own podcast. Ball was a guest on Hart’s show and was describing how he didn’t like Lithuania, saying it was ‘depressing’ and ‘I had to get out of there, bro.’ Hart jokingly responded, “Sounds like LA. No, I’m not talking about the city.” There’s some truth to every joke though, right? But to Hart’s credit, he later cleared the air and even apologized to the Lakers organization via phone call shortly after.
Let’s make this clear. I loved my time in LA and loved my coaches, teammates and training staff. Got nothing but love and respect for the front office
— Josh Hart (@joshhart) September 5, 2019
Still, it’s fair to think that Hart, Ingram and Ball would love to knock off the team that didn’t value their talent and consequently traded them for another player.
*The Brow has joined the conversation*
AD’s chance to validate trade request
After seven years in New Orleans and only two playoff berths, Anthony Davis requested a trade in Jan. 2019. He was acquired by Los Angeles later that summer to be paired with LeBron for a 2020 title run, and hopefully, to finish his career there.
So far, the deal has been worth it for Davis and the Lakers. They sit atop the Western Conference with a 49-14 record and are one of the favorites to collect some hardware in October.
But for Davis, a three-time All-NBA selection, 26.7 points and 9.4 rebounds a game on 51 percent through his first 55 games in LA is impressive. Also a three-time all-league defender, AD is arguably the Defensive Player of the Year. He’s averaged 1.5 steals and 2.4 blocks, effectively guarded positions 1-5 all season and made plenty of highlight plays along the way.
https://youtu.be/cojcfIX7EEQ
We won’t get to hear the “BOOs!” from the Smoothie King Center crowd when AD is introduced in the starting lineup, should the two teams meet in the playoffs. We will see The Brow take it to his old team, however. And we can except the Pelicans to do the same to him.
In Davis’ return to the Big Easy, he put up 41 points, nine rebounds and three steals, leading the Lakers to a 114-110 win against his old squad. It got worse for New Orleans when it visited LA for the next matchup, however. Davis outdid his first performance with a 46-point, 13-rebound, three-steal explosion en route to a 123-113 victory. Now, Zion didn’t play in either of those two games, but the thought of seeing those two talented forwards go at it seems enticing, too.
The Pelicans open up play against the Utah Jazz July 30 and will have some work to do as they make a postseason push. They’re currently 3.5 games behind the Memphis Grizzlies for the eighth seed and will face the young, hungry team on Aug. 3 in a critical game. New Orleans also trails the Portland Trailblazers by a percentage tiebreaker despite having swept them in four games this season.
They essentially control their own destiny. Win and get in, even if it’s the ninth seed. Because the NBA Gods know we’d all LOVE to see the Pelicans in the playoffs, and hopefully, facing off against the Lakers in David versus Goliath matchup that could have some upset potential.
(All stats via Basketball-Reference, NBA.com and ESPN.com) Follow us on Twitter @LakersLead for the latest Lakers news and insight.
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