Does Pelicans' Future Mirror Celtics' NBA Title Run?

A rookie head coach was the missing ingredient for Boston, as Willie Green is for the Pelicans to make a title run in 2023.

Kyle T. Mosley | Jun 3, 2022

Does Pelicans' Future Mirror Celtics' NBA Title Run? /

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In New Orleans, the difference between an okay bowl of gumbo and a great gumbo is not only the right ingredients, but it's usually the right cook. For years I watched my mother have people devouring her gumbo so much that my friends would come to the house from 12 AM to 2 AM on Thanksgiving and Christmases to get the first tastes. Mom knew how to make gumbo! I tried her recipe, failed, and I stunk up the joint. You can get my point.

Boston made the NBA's Eastern Conference Finals in 2017, 2018, and 2020 under Brad Stevens' leadership - but something was missing. Why couldn't the Celtics get over the hump with a good head coach? Or, could it be the right players needed to connect with a coach who understood their passions and situation?

The Pelicans' 2021-22 season was on life support until David Griffin made the mid-season trade for CJ McCollum. Still, New Orleans had to have the right coach to guide the team. Willie Green kept saying he believed in the team and his coaching staff, but the team had to "buy-in" to the staff's direction. They did, and the unthinkable occurred in the process.

New Orleans made the NBA Play-In Tournament and eventually the NBA Western Conference Playoffs with a rookie head coach and staff. Brandon Ingram, Jonas Valančiūnas, and CJ McCollum weren't rookies, but they required the infusion of rookie teammates to make the Pelicans' gumbo work.

Next season, Herb Jones, Trey Murphy III, and Jose "Grand Theft" Alvarado will become NBA veterans. Yet, could a little extra spice in the pot help them get to the NBA proverbial "Promised Land" past the Warriors, Suns, Jazz, Memphis, and others in Willie Green's second season as head coach?

Ime Udoka - another rookie head coach - has done a phenomenal job in Boston with his young Celtics. Veterans Jayson Tatum, Marcus Smart, and Al Horford needed an Ime Udoka.

He's a former player and assistant coach who played and studied under great head coaches. Best of all, he won a championship in 2014 as a San Antonio Spurs assistant under the legendary Gregg Popovich.

Udoka is the right cook for the Celtics' clam chowder, just as Willie Green's the right cook for the Pelicans' gumbo.

The men in green took Game 1 of the NBA Finals against the three-time NBA Champions from Golden State. Why? Because they finally believe in the message from their head coach and his staff.

With Willie Green and another missing ingredient named Zion Williamson be able to take the Pelicans to the next level in 2023?

We shall see.

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Published Jun 3, 2022

KYLE T. MOSLEY

Kyle T. Mosley