As arguably the least loquacious member of the New Orleans Pelicans, 7-foot center Omer Asik can be a bit camera- and microphone-shy, but he sat down after Monday’s shootaround to meet with media and discuss his 2015-16 season. Asik has experienced a rough campaign, starting with a preseason calf injury, then continuing with a Feb. 21 ankle sprain that sidelined him for five games. By the time Asik returned from that ailment, the Pelicans’ postseason chances were all but extinguished (New Orleans went 1-4 over that span, including a bitter March 2 defeat at eighth-place Houston).
“It’s tough all around,” Asik summarized of the season. “Especially for me; I started getting hurt in preseason, a couple small injuries. As a whole team, it’s not a good season for us.”
The native of Turkey has rarely been at 100 percent health-wise this season, but recently appears to be in better condition and has produced a few quality stat lines, including 15 rebounds at Indiana and 15-point, 14-board game in a win over the Clippers.
“I definitely feel much healthier,” Asik said. “I feel better, I feel confident in my body. I just tried to get better every day and play better.”
Asik hopes to play internationally for the Turkish national team this summer, as he has in past offseasons.
“We have Olympic qualification games for Turkey,” he said. “So if I feel healthy enough, then I would love to play and get in better shape for next season.”
Asked specifically about his fit in Alvin Gentry’s up-tempo system, he responded that he can’t give an informed assessment of the Pelicans until they get to play with far fewer key injuries.
“I played in this system before. I played good in this system,” Asik said, alluding to his two seasons with the Houston Rockets. “It just takes time, and we haven’t played together the whole season. It’s hard to explain things – it would be easier to tell you when we are all healthy, and see how everything goes.”
Other notes from shootaround:
One Pelicans player with at least a temporary big smile on his face this morning was Dante Cunningham, whose college, Villanova, reached the Final Four on Saturday night by beating Kansas. The forward was able to catch the final few minutes, after New Orleans’ game vs. Toronto. “It was like I was almost there,” Cunningham said of his excitement in watching on TV. “It was definitely a nail-biter.”