New Orleans point guard Jrue Holiday was speaking for himself and the throng of media on hand Wednesday, but he could just have easily been talking about the Pelicans’ fan base and its anticipation for Thursday’s home game vs. Houston. In the Rockets’ first visit to New Orleans of 2016-17, DeMarcus Cousins will make his Pelicans debut, an addition that’s made his new team the talk of the NBA this week.
“I’m just as excited as you guys are,” Holiday told reporters. “I’m ready for tomorrow to come.”
Following Cousins’ first practice with New Orleans (23-34), Holiday and Anthony Davis discussed their level of excitement to be joined by the three-time All-Star. Davis noted that after he learned of the trade with Sacramento late Sunday, he couldn’t sleep, so he texted his friend Cousins at 3 a.m. To Davis’ surprise, Cousins immediately returned the message.
“Once I found out we got him, I was just up all night, thinking about how far we can go and what we can do on the court together,” Davis said of a Sunday when he’d also won MVP of the All-Star Game. “We were just texting back and forth about the team. We were both excited. I’m glad he’s here.”
The three Pelicans had their first chance to work on their on-court chemistry during Wednesday’s practice, preparing to begin the post-break portion of the schedule Thursday in the Smoothie King Center. Available tickets for Rockets-Pelicans are dwindling quickly, as is the case for several other upcoming home games, including the March 31 contest vs. Cousins’ former team, Sacramento. In addition to a dramatically bigger national spotlight focused on the Pelicans since Sunday, local interest has spiked significantly, something Davis has witnessed first-hand.
“From what I hear from other people around the city, people are trying to buy tickets and the prices went up,” he said.
“(Going 3-1 on a four-game road trip prior to All-Star) gave us a lot of excitement, a big push,” Holiday said. “Now that we’ve got this dominant piece, another dominant piece, it’s just exciting. I don’t even really know the word to describe it. I’m just really excited to get back out there again.”
Holiday and Davis both pondered the increased potential options with Cousins in the lineup, noting how it will free up room for everyone on the floor. Holiday believes it will make his job as point guard that much easier, even though he’ll need to make sure both bigs are heavily involved in the attack.
“It really isn’t hard – just get (Cousins) the ball and let him go to work,” Holiday said, when asked about playing with Cousins. “Pairing him with AD should be really fun to watch. It’s endless opportunity and possibility. I’m just excited to see what goes on tomorrow.
“It’s going to be tough for people. You have to pick your poison. If you want to double DeMarcus, AD’s open. If you want to double AD, DeMarcus is open.”
Davis, the NBA’s fifth-leading scorer at 27.7 points per game, has often had significant pressure on him to carry a major offensive load. Particularly early in 2016-17, even when he did that, New Orleans didn’t always win, including 50- and 45-point outings during October defeats vs. Denver and Golden State, respectively. Now with Cousins as an inside-outside sidekick, Davis projects that there will be less stress to force things in games when his shot isn’t falling or he’s not in rhythm.
“I haven’t had another guy, besides Jrue, who’s been one of the premier guys in the league,” Davis said. “(Cousins is) that guy.
“Now when you’re having a bad night, you’re not putting as much pressure on yourself. It’s going to be scary to see, when all three of us are rolling in one game.”