Larry Nance Jr. responded to New Orleans Pelicans coach Willie Green’s all-hands-on-deck call in the play-in tournament finale against the Sacramento Kings. With Zion Williamson playing cheerleader due to a strained hamstring, the Pelicans continued their dominance over the visiting Kings. New Orleans’ 105-98 victory allowed them to ride the last bus to the 2024 NBA playoffs.
Brandon Ingram, playing in just his second game after a long injury layoff, showed why the Pelicans were unfazed. “BI” had 24 points, six rebounds and six assists to drag the home team to the finish line. Jonas Valanciunas also muscled his way to 19 points and 12 rebounds.
After the game, Larry Nance Jr. was asked about the New Orleans Pelicans’ win despite missing Williamson. He took a dig at somebody who has been in the headlines for the wrong reasons:
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“We got a ton of respect for them, but respectfully I’m betting on the Pels. … No Jontay Porter.”
Jontay Porter, the former Toronto Raptors backup big man, was investigated by the NBA for gambling issues late in March. After a nearly three-week probe, Porter was banned for life after the allegations against him were confirmed.
Porter was found guilty of revealing information to sports bettors that resulted in multiple individuals winning big in two Toronto games. Porter gambled on the Raptors to lose, something that Larry Nance Jr. used to take a shot at the banned player.
Larry Nance Jr. will keep on “betting” the underdog Pelicans versus the OKC Thunder
Larry Nance Jr. and the New Orleans Pelicans lost the regular season series 2-1 to the OKC Thunder. Both teams have thrown that record out the window as their first-round playoff series starts on Sunday in Oklahoma. The last time they met in a high-stakes game was over a year ago in the play-in tournament when the Pelicans won 123-118.
This year, the Thunder didn’t just enter the playoffs as one of the lower-seeded teams. They vaulted to the top of the Western Conference totem pole over the Denver Nuggets and Minnesota Timberwolves. As the No. 1 seed, OKC is the big favorite over the Zion Williamson-less Pelicans.
Willie Green will ask the same approach from his team to pull the rug from under their highly-touted opponents. Larry Nance Jr. mentioned how the underrated players of the team proved that they shouldn’t be overlooked. Jonas Valanciunas gave Domantas Sabonis fits while Jose Alvarado and Nnaji Marshall were thorns in the Kings’ side.
Nance and his teammates will have unquestionably a “No Jontay Porter” drive versus the OKC Thunder in the 2024 NBA Playoffs. But, to come out on top, they will have to be all-in on everything Green will ask of them to do.
Edited by Michael Macasero
