Pelicans summon team effort to stun Rockets amid Anthony Davis saga

The pressure, whatever it was, is off.

Whether Dell Demps, Alvin Gentry or players on the current New Orleans Pelicans roster have a job here next season or not, the revelation of Anthony Davis wanting out of the organization has taken a load off of everyone.

Now, it is all about making sound decisions about getting the very best value for one of the very best players in the NBA.

The Lakers are desperate to acquire Davis and Davis, based on published reports, is desperate to get to Los Angeles.

The pressure is on Magic Johnson and the Lakers to deliver for LeBron James, who is indirectly calling the shots.

While the Lakers tamper with their roster (pun intended), the Pelicans are tampering with the idea of which packaging looks the best in the present or in the future.

Is New Orleans motivated to take the best deal now or to wait until the offseason for Boston to go all in?

Many feel the Celtics have more assets to offer. Others like what the Lakers bring to the table. Are the Knicks serious?

Whatever the case may be, a deal will be made.

Meanwhile, while the divorce proceedings between Davis and the Pelicans are proceeding, the papers have not been signed.

As a result, Davis’ large presence was on the bench for last night’s game at the Toyota Center. Despite smiles throughout, the tension is palpable in the organization, from coaches to players to management.

When there was still hope of retaining Davis in New Orleans, the Pelicans opened what looked like a promising season with a very impressive 131-112 win at Houston on Oct. 17.

Of course, Davis was a huge part of the win with 39 points and 16 rebounds.

The euphoria and promise of a 4-0 start gave way to predictable, plentiful injuries to key players and falling into also-ran status in the deep Western conference quickly for New Orleans.

Up until last night, that was likely the most impressive victory of the season for the Pelicans.

Then came the first game since Davis relayed his desire to be traded and that he would not sign an extension with the Pelicans.

Ironically, it was at Toyota Center.

Illustrating the continuous, frustrating, maddening, mind-numbing, perplexing injury situation haunting this franchise over the past several years, the Pelicans faced an ascending Rockets team without five of its top six scorers.

It seemed like a perfect night for a rout for the home team.

Think again.

The visiting team summoned up an inspiring, gut-check effort in a 121-116 win over the Rockets. It was the most impressive win since the season opener, perhaps even more significant, given the circumstances.

Jahlil Okafor continued his resurgence. He has scored 17 or more points in five straight games. More than anyone else, he has benefited from the injuries to Davis and Mirotic. Okafor has double-doubles in four of his last five games. Of course, Okafor registered 20 DNP’s previously on a team in need of depth. Perhaps he should have gotten minutes earlier in the season.

Jrue Holiday, who has shown up every night, not missing a game and playing both ends of the floor in excellent fashion, was excellent last night. Holiday had 18 points, eight assists, six rebounds and six blocked shots, stuffing the stat sheet. By the way, he did an excellent job on James Harden.

Ian Clark emerged from obscurity to post a season high 15 points. Darius Miller had 14 points while Frank Jackson and Tim Frazier each had 10 points in a balanced effort.

The Pelicans hustled to the win, playing hard on both ends, a rarity, sharing the ball (27 assists) and controlling the boards with a 55-45 edge. It was fun to watch.

On the injury front, Davis has now missed five straight games with his bad finger. He has missed 10 games this season. Julius Randle has missed three straight games and four overall. Niko Mirotic has missed the last three games and 19 overall. E’Twaun Moore has missed two of the last three games and has missed seven games overall. Elfrid Payton missed last night’s game and he has missed 31 games with various injuries. Darius Miller has missed five games.

You cannot make this stuff up.

Haven’t we had this discussion before?

Remember Eric Gordon, Ryan Anderson, Rajon Rondo, Omer Asik, Chris Kaman and so many others?

The theme is a common one. How many times can we say or hear “if only they could stay healthy, we could find out just how good they can be?”

The Pelicans are not good, particularly without Davis on the floor.

If no deal is made soon, do you really want to play Davis or do you want to move on? Do you want to tank and improve your draft status? Do you want to make a deal quickly to get assets and blend them in with core players to begin the future now? Do you want to wait until the offseason to try to maximize value for Davis?

The questions are plentiful. For one night in Houston, the Pelicans had answers. It was enjoyable. It was a true team effort. If only that had manifested itself earlier this season, would we be having this conversation?