 Editor’s note: Melvin Ely is one of the team’s best storytellers and always seems to have something humorous or entertaining to say about a vast array of topics. So who better to invite to start a new blog on Hornets.com? This is the first edition of “Ely Elaborates,” which will appear on the site throughout the season. DENTAL NIGHTMARE It was only supposed to be for a check-up. About a week before our overseas trip to Germany and Spain, I got elbowed in the face by Roy Hibbert of the Pacers during our preseason game in Indianapolis. I ended up cracking my tooth, but it was under my cap. So when I went to get a check-up, the dentist touched my tooth to work on it. But when he did that, I ended up jumping out of the chair. I ended up having an abscess tooth. We didn’t know I had an abscess tooth until we were already in the middle of a root canal. After it was over, my tooth and jaw were infected. I had a ball full of puss in my neck, and under my mouth there was the actual shape of a golf ball. It actually made my tongue lopsided. I had to walk around with a hole in my tooth to let it drain for like three or four days. It was like the strangest thing – there were a couple New Orleans dentists who told me they never have seen anything like it. It was just a freak accident and it could have been worse since it was under a cap (porcelain top). It sat me out for awhile, but now I am back in action. It was tough seeing my teammates lose the first two games that I was out with the tooth injury, especially against the Charlotte Bobcats. I never want to lose to the Bobcats since the day I left them. I don’t hold any harsh feelings against them, but I don’t like them as a team. They were a great team when I was there and as anybody knows when you leave a team you just want to beat that team. The rest of my career, whenever we play Charlotte or one of my other former teams, the Los Angeles Clippers, I especially don’t want to lose. It hurts when you see your team lose and you look back and you believe you could have helped, but I am glad it happened early in the season, rather than later on.
I dressed up as Shaft for Chris Paul’s Halloween party, where I had a ball. Part of my costume was to fro my hair out. All of my teammates kept asking me to keep the fro when they saw me out that night. So I decided to keep it for the home opener against the Cavaliers. I was thinking that Ben Wallace was also going to have his fro for the game. So there would have been two of us running out there with big ol’ fros. Peja wanted me to keep it until we lost, but knowing this team, we can go on a 12- or 13-game winning streak, and that’s a long time to play with all that hair. This season I plan to be doing a couple of crazy things with my hair. I am going to try to braid it into a Mohawk for a couple games. I may fro it out again. But keep watching my hair – there is more to come. MEL’S ALL-HAIR TEAM While I’m on the subject of hair, these players are my top five NBA hairstyles: * Ben Wallace, Cleveland Cavaliers. He tops them all. I don’t know how he gets it straight up like that. It doesn’t bounce, doesn’t move. * Anderson Varejao, Cleveland Cavaliers. He looks like Sideshow Bob from the Simpsons, all curly and bouncy. * Mickael Gelabale, formerly of the Seattle SuperSonics. He has some crazy hair. * Chris Wilcox, Oklahoma City Thunder. He has the long, single-braid thing going on. * Melvin Ely, New Orleans Hornets.  THE SHAR PEI EFFECT People think that braids is a “kid thing,” but just try to keep braids to see what kind of a kid thing it is. It’s hard to maintain. It’s a constant struggle every day to make it look nice. It is a personal statement for me. I actually prefer having hair; I play my best ball with braids. It has been six years since I have had short hair. It was actually six days before the draft and I haven’t had a haircut since. Carmelo is lucky because he cut his before he had the “Shar Pei” thing. You get a lot of extra skin on top of your head from the braids pulling so tight. You get a little Shar Pei dog on the back of your head. I definitely have it. It’s crazy, because Hilton Armstrong has a Shar Pei in the back of his head and he never had braids. Melo is lucky: He must have a good head, because braids can mess up your head. MY TWIN, CHRIS WILCOX People say Chris Wilcox and I look alike all the time. It’s bad. It was real bad when we were on the L.A. Clippers together. Parents, teammates and everybody used to get us mixed up. My mom would yell “Mel!” at Chris and Chris’ mom was saying “Hey Chris” to me. It was crazy. I was lucky to spend my first couple years playing with Chris. He was a great teammate, hard worker, and he has earned all the success he has gotten in this league. To be compared to any player that is a great basketball player is a compliment. So as long as he keeps playing great basketball, I’m OK with people getting us confused. That’s all for now, Hornets fans. If there are any topics you would like me to elaborate on next month, please feel free to let me know. Until next time, keep packing the Hive and supporting us! If you’d like to ask Melvin Ely a question or comment on the “Ely Elaborates” blog, send an e-mail to jime@hornets.com. Please include “Ely Elaborates” in the subject of your e-mail. Other Ely Elaborates Entries Ely Elaborates - Mar. 30 Ely Elaborates - Jan. 26 Ely Elaborates - Dec. 15 |
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