We like Lonzo Ball. He’s an outstanding defender, a brilliant passer and his shot has come a long way lately.
But he’s missed the last three games for New Orleans and the Pelicans have won all three.
The win over Philly was by seven, the win over Cleveland was by 13 and the win over Sacramento, like the one over Philly, was by seven.
In the five preceding games, New Orleans went 1-4.
So what gives?
The first thing is that Ball has struggled with a hip injury and while he played in some of those 1-4 games, he’s not been at 100 percent for a while.
You also can’t really say it’s because he’s out or that the Pelicans are better without him.
However, when you look at this clip from Sunday’s win over Cleveland, it’s fairly dazzling and we don’t just mean former Duke star Williamson.
We haven’t watched this team closely enough to make serious judgments or predictions. But we can say this.
What we see on this clip is brilliant passing. And it’s not just Williamson and obviously not Ball, who is himself a brilliant passer.
It’s also fellow former Devil Brandon Ingram. We never thought he was selfish or even a bad passer but he’s become a very good one. It’s Wake Forest product James Johnson, who makes some really sweet ones here too.
It’s Naji Marshall. It’s Eric Bledsoe. It’s Steven Adams. It’s Josh Hart.
This team is certainly built to run but when you add great passing to running you have the potential for something extraordinary.