*Pelicans fans don’t take their seats after the anthem and remain standing after the ball is tipped*
my brain:
don’t say it
don’t say it
don’t say it
don’t say it
don’t say it
don’t say it
don’t say it
don’t say it
don’t say it
don’t say it
don’t say it
me and every other Celtic fan in the building: hey down in front!
Don’t say that! Fans in the big ease don’t SIT DOWN (Al Pacino voice) until the first Pelicans basket. Sometimes…that can take awhile. But that’s just the New Orleans way. So we better recognize as Basketball Buzz was in the French Quarter to start this week and continue our road trip across the United States from New York to New Orleans and beyond Louisiana.
And the Celtics didn’t take it easy on the Pelicans in the Big Easy like this writer nodding to every Celtic green fan he saw in Crescent City on the way to the Smoothie King Center. Jokes on you guys, I’m a Lakers fan. I am literally messing with you. But the Celtics had the last laugh against a team that was trolling them with the ‘Cheers’ theme on the jumbotron for the pregame introductions. You could almost see the “this again” look on Gordon Hayward’s face (you could also see that if he was almost 100% back to his all cylinder level he would have gone off on them for that). Sure it’s a classic show. But it’s there show. As this writer can attest. I literally went to that bar the other day for a drink and nobody knew my name…pr###s! Ah well the joke really is on me. Shouldn’t have hung my LeBron jersey out my hotel room. The LeBron Lakers jersey that is, just to confirm. Still seems like he’s not a Laker when you see his name on the jumbotron. Like he’s his own player. His own franchise and entity.
Anyway…
The C’s made their way to the N.O. around the same day as this writer. But I’m a fool for thinking they may have been on the same flight. Like they’d take a “is it late night? Or early morning” red eye that connects via a long wait in Atlanta the day before. Yeah there’s more chance of them flying coach like my economy class. Still it seems like as this writer leaves for San Diego and Boston continues road tripping like Anthony Kiedis’ two favourite allies there is one guy who wants to join all this. And we aren’t talking about him leaving for California with and like LeBron next Summer. No matter how many want that true warriors takeover. No, it’s more like the rumor having it that the ‘brow of Anthony Davis wants to get down with the green machine in Beantown for every hoops fan coffee shop corner conversation. This one’s for all the lucky charms.
The Celtics already have their next chapter in storied history with a team we’ve already said could take the Warriors in less than the seven games Kyrie thinks they can. But if the Boston boys of Irving, still superstar Gordon Hayward’, biggest of big-men Al Horford and the young future of Jaylen Brown (M.I.A. in this game due to injury like opposing future of this game, Pelican Payton) and next elite great, Jayson Tatum can stay together like Al Green. Then this historical franchise could reboot their Lakers rivalry for the fourth installment after their trilogy of logos, Magic’s and Mamba’s. Or should we say Russell, Bird and Kevin? For the real Kyrie vs the King contest of champions.
But it’ll all be over if they get A.D. before L.A. from NOLA, LA. Especially if they don’t have to give up much to get him like the services of a Jimmy Butler trade. Davis and Irving on the same team…and Tatum?! Durant, Curry, Draymond, Klay and Boogie Cousins wouldn’t be enough for that. They wouldn’t be able to match them. And as for the clipped Pelicans they’d only have one ‘cat left with the U.K.’s Julius Randle (the one bruiser the Lakers should have kept in purple with the gold of the King). Sure the Pels would still have European big Nikola and Jrue but it would be no holiday. And they know it. You could even see it in the way they couldn’t get it going tonight. Like Morris getting under Mitotic’s skin, figuratively and literally. Or for every big-play being one-upped by the NBA’s most successful team ever. Like Randle’s clutch block to end the first leading to a buzzer beating three from Rozier.
Even Davis didn’t look like himself despite a legendary line of 27 and 15 he couldn’t draw one under it all. At one point he even fell under Boston’s Marcus Smart on a play for the closest he’ll get to a Celtic uniform before the trade deadline…dumb I know. Sure it wasn’t like he was coasting for a move to the East, but it didn’t look like a stepped up the spotlight audition either. Whereas Boston showed balance behind Kyrie’s 26 with 20 from both vet Horford and the kid Tatum on poster dunking display. And all that all in all helped tip the scales for a 124-107 slaughter in the French Quarter.
But will that translate to an “au revoir” for Anthony like Carmelo in Houston?
Will the Pelican fly, Pelican fly?
No or no more for N.O.?
Either way for the big it ain’t going to be easy.
