Will we be allowed to win?
To me the first few minutes of the Warriors game in the second round of the playoffs had two messages: You might have been allowed to play defense against the Blazers, but that won't be allowed against the Warriors. You will not be allowed to win (a game or so, OK, but not a series).
And during the regular season it's infuriating to see Paul George get a foul call when no Pelican is within 5 feet of him, the difference in foul calls when Holiday goes to the basket vs the foul calls Harden gets, etc., etc.
I can imagine LeBron telling AD, "Leave the Pelicans and you'll get the national TV games, exposure, and calls from the refs that you can't get in New Orleans. Also, you'll be allowed to win playoff games."
Perhaps the fact that we got a Christmas Day game indicates that the Zion phenomenon/hype/story is so strong that we will be allowed to win. In the past all of the traditional calls and no-calls just screwed over a small market team, but now they would be screwing over Zion. The NBA likes to hype their stars and the calls/no-calls against the Zion-Pelicans might get more scrutiny. A man can dream!
And during the regular season it's infuriating to see Paul George get a foul call when no Pelican is within 5 feet of him, the difference in foul calls when Holiday goes to the basket vs the foul calls Harden gets, etc., etc.
I can imagine LeBron telling AD, "Leave the Pelicans and you'll get the national TV games, exposure, and calls from the refs that you can't get in New Orleans. Also, you'll be allowed to win playoff games."
Perhaps the fact that we got a Christmas Day game indicates that the Zion phenomenon/hype/story is so strong that we will be allowed to win. In the past all of the traditional calls and no-calls just screwed over a small market team, but now they would be screwing over Zion. The NBA likes to hype their stars and the calls/no-calls against the Zion-Pelicans might get more scrutiny. A man can dream!