True fans are happy to see two teams at full play against each other, but injuries are a part of the game.
After Bukla injured his hamstring, the Pelicans had a great opportunity to extend their results in the playoffs. In the second game, Ingram walked the game dramatically with tough mid-range shots and a long pass.
In this series, we see a Brandon Ingram who has changed since last season and has completely entered a whole new phase of the season.
From the Lakers to the Pelicans, from the Youngsters to the tactical true core
As one of the four youngest lakers in the past, Ingram finally knocked on the door of the playoffs in the sixth season of his career. This already belongs to the category of late bloomers, as a contrast, the same year's tandem Jaylen Brown, has already played the fifth playoff of his career.
Ingram is not without opportunities, and when he was with the Lakers, he was a key target for young players. After James's arrival, management and coaches did not forget to give him the opportunity to grow. James joined the regular season for the first year, the fourth quarter was behind, and the experience of consecutive singles failures in Ingram was still vivid.
It is this seemingly immature, template Durant jr. but Durant is far from Durant, in the 2022 playoffs, win 2 consecutive games to get playoff tickets, two playoff games, Ingram with 40 shots 25 of the efficient offense to win 57 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists, is the core factor of the Pelicans to win.
Although he made it to the playoffs, it was not easy to face the first place in the West, last season's Western Championship Phoenix Suns, the first playoff game of his life, Crowder's full-court defense, Bridges and Booker's co-defense limited Ingram, 35.3% shooting rate, making the game look one-sided.
By the second game of the series, Ingram had become "very different" in terms of playing style. Breaking through with the ball, singles in the face frame, every shot is full of decisiveness, a performance of 37 points, 11 rebounds and 9 assists, taking away the Suns' counterattack hope.
At the beginning, they were still just a bottom team in the West with 1 wins and 12 losses, but the addition of McCollum helped the Pelicans optimize the backcourt configuration, rationalized the configuration with the core Ingram, and the team's future looks very bright, so that many people forget that the future "league façade" is still sitting on the court.
Can Fat Tiger's "super configuration" still be achieved?
Before the Fat Tigers season reimbursement, the Pelicans were the representative of the "Temple Demon Wind".
Before the team could play, fans on both sides set up camps, competing for who should be the tactical core of the team? In terms of playing style, the two also have conflicts.
Since entering the league, Ingram is practicing according to the core or the second person of the team, one move and one style, the offensive means are practiced according to the ball carrier, the rookie period is the 2 bosses in the team, after the Pelicans, the strength has improved, and McCollum's partner has also successfully entered the playoffs, there is no reason to give up the ball for the newcomers.
As for Zion Williamson, before entering the league, there were too many titles, exaggerated style of play, and before playing a formal NBA game, he had already reached a valuable cooperation with Nike and became the endorsement star of Air Jordan, so much attention, which is the treatment of James and Durant in the past.
In the field of strength, regardless of the impact of injuries, the healthy fat tigers averaged 27 points and 7.2 rebounds per game, and the energy that exploded seemed to be stronger than Ingram, which had been cultivated for many years. But considering injury factors, the future of fat tigers is still foggy.
What's more, from the team's point of view, the Pelicans' possession points are now too rich.
At the beginning of the game, the Pelicans have a lot of ball power in the backcourt but are inefficient, and the discerning people know that this situation is bound to be adjusted. The ideal situation is to find a projection type of big name backcourt, play the front line to hold the ball, and the old way to shoot at the backcourt.
But their later team building ideas and expectations are different, they traded a lot of role players with independent offensive ability, and in their careers have a certain amount of ball, such as big Warren, or McCollum, considering Ingram or the subsequent comeback of the fat tiger, pelicans start, a ball is a bit insufficient.
Since the draft period, Fat Tiger and his team have always been eager to go to the big city to play and maximize commercial value.
Now, the Pelicans can be less worried, ingram and CJ combination looks very healthy, and can be stable for a long time, if the rookie season is over, you have to break up with the fat tiger, at least, the Pelicans can still be "decent".