Green Emphasizing Fundamentals, Joy Among Coaching Staff
New Orleans, La.- "We've got to stay the course...We've been here before. This is not new to this team. We had more losses this time last year. So perspective is important for us at this time."
After a tenth straight loss, that was the focus of New Orleans Pelicans head coach Willie Green in the postgame press conference following a road defeat to the Dallas Mavericks. Coming home to face LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers was a daunting task, but New Orleans pulled out their first home victory in a month.
Feb 4, 2023; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram (14) drives to the basket against Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (6) during the first half at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports
Green, who started his coaching career with a 3-16 start last season, has dealt with a variety of questions regarding the health and attitude of the locker room recently. A franchise-worst losing streak while missing two All-Stars (Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram) has a tendency to elicit inquiries from the media about how the players are handling the adversity, especially with the trade deadline just days away.
But what about the coaching staff? It's no secret the Pelicans have one of the least experienced staffs in the NBA going by years of prior experience. How have they handled the most recent losing streak as a group and what has been the message to the team?
Getting to talk with Green before tipoff against the Sacramento Kings, I focused on the team's effort and execution. When asked if it was important to bring a renewed emphasis on off-ball actions and being more urgent to get into sets earlier in the shot clock, Green replied, "It is. It is something that we thrive on. It is something that we work on, something we watch."
Coach Green continued, adding "It is a big part of our concepts. It was good to see it carried over into last night and we played faster but even in the half-court, we played with more force when we were getting into our sets with our screens and our cutting."
Feb 5, 2023; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Naji Marshall (8) dunks the ball against the Sacramento Kings during the first quarter at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Wevers-USA TODAY Sports
The top-down message to the rest of the coaching staff from Green has been, "Very similar to our players, we lean on each other. We continue to try and stay even kneeled throughout difficult times, losing streaks."
As far as the process through a long regular season slate, "We continue to look at our team and see where we can make some adjustments but we want our foundation to be intact no matter what happens. I'm extremely proud of our coaches, our players, performance, medical, across the board. We just need to stick with it. Keep our heads down. Keep working and keep coming in with joy."
Why?
"Big picture, and I say it to our team, if you lose a game in the NBA, NBA being a keyword, you know, life is not that bad. We can get over this. We will figure it out."
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