The NBA All-Star weekend is over and now the players are taking advantage of some much-needed rest as most enjoy a week off. The participants in the All-Star game enjoy a little less time off. In case you missed it New Orleans Pelicans star forward Anthony Davis dropped in 52 points breaking Wilt Chamberlains’ All-Star game scoring record (42 points) which was 54 years old.
The All-Star game MVP led the West Stars to a 192-182 victory scoring 20 of his 52 points in the fourth quarter which is impressive in itself. I thought Russell Westbrook was going to be the MVP for a third straight year, I was off but not by much. Westbrook actually finished with 41 points and the West All-Star coach Steve Kerr had Westbrook take a seat in the latter part of the game. But the Oklahoma City Guard being the team player that he is was happy to see the young Davis win the honors while playing in front of Pelicans fans.
Speaking of the Pelicans they are sitting two and a half games behind the eighth-place Denver Nuggets in the Western division (The last qualifying spot for the postseason). It looks like New Orleans is focusing on making a playoff run with 25 games left in the season. New Orleans completed a trade that will bring Sacramento Kings’ Big Man DeMarcus Cousins and Forward Omri Casspi to the Pelicans. The Kings who are only a game and a half behind Denver will get Tyreke Evans, Buddy Hield, Langston Galloway and two draft picks this summer. I think the advantage in this transaction belongs to New Orleans.The six foot eleven inch tall Cousins is averaging 27 points a game and pulling down 10 rebounds. Casspi is a six foot nine inch forward who shoots nearly forty percent from beyond the arc.He can get hot from outside the three point line but so far this season he is only averaging 5 points and 4 rebounds per game.
The impact of the addition of “Boogie” Cousins to the Pelicans frontcourt will be huge when you add his numbers to Davis’ 27 points and 11 rebounds per game. If the two former Kentucky Wildcats can gel together New Orleans could take flight and make the playoffs. But, The success of this combination will weigh heavily on Cousins who leads the NBA with 17 technical fouls and whose intensity on the court is only outmatched by his ferociousness under the basket grabbing rebounds. I Think that: “Boogie” who was drafted by Sacramento in 2010 was tired of losing and thus the reason behind his being “T” d up on the regular.The Kings drafted him in 2010 and have not won more than 33 games in a season since he has been in Sacramento.
So, I think a storm is brewing in The Bayou and Thursday night we will see what direction the winds will blow. Cousins and Davis will team up against James Harden and the Houston Rockets in the duo’s first test. The Rockets are third in the Western Conference and playing well, So if “Boogie” and “AD” can take away the frustration of losing it could be the perfect storm for New Orleans fans and a terrible experience for the Rockets and future Pelicans opponents.
NOTE: Los Angeles Lakers fire GM Mitch Kupchak, name Magic Johnson president of basketball operations nba.com
Trevin A Jones
Follow Me on Twitter: @UMTSportsreport
