Rain Man

NEW ORLEANS – Over the weekend, the sky decided to drop its entire load on the city of New Orleans. According to data, nearly 5 inches of rain fell on the Crescent City on Saturday during the Pre-Mardi Gras. The ensuing weather change caused parades to be moved up to the early morning anticipating the heavy precipitation.

Although, it seemed like the entire city knew about the monsoon, yet no one alerted the Sewage & Water Board of New Orleans. Because, once again, the pumps were not working at full capacity causing flooding all over the city. Go figure.

But I digress.

On Sunday, the bright yellow sun returned, and the cool water subsided. The dense puddles were no longer visible. The air was crisp and filled with barbecue smoke on St. Charles. The cars positioned on the higher neutral ground were now parked on side streets in preparation for Femme Fatale & King Arthur. The parades were back, and it was time to let the good times roll.

That’s no different than what we saw on Tuesday night in the Smoothie King Center. The good times were rolling, and Brandon Ingram was driving the float.

The New Orleans Pelicans returned for a one-game pit stop before they progress on the second leg of the Mardi Gras Mambo road trip with games against the Clippers, Lakers, Blazers, and Grizzlies.

In the blowout Pelicans’ victory over the overwhelmed Toronto Raptors, B.I. did something he had not done before. This accomplishment made his teammates go into a frenzy of celebration while on the bench. This accomplishment made co-star Zion Williamson say, “Nah, fourteen got it” when asked to return to the game during the 3rd quarter.

Brandon Ingram made 5 consecutive threes. This was the first time he performed this feat in his career. B.I. completed the 3rd quarter with 41 points and went 8/11 from deep.

As my Uptown potna and colleague Lito Henderson stated on the Pro Pels Talk post-game podcast, “[Brandon Ingram] could play like this every night if he wanted to. The thing that’s stopping him [from shooting 3’s] is him.”

On a night where fans had to say goodbye or good riddance to the Pelicans’ secondary mascot – King Cake Baby, the Pelicans hope to say goodbye to Brandon Ingram’s hesitancy to shoot threes.

B.I. is known for his ability to operate in the midrange. He is top 5 in attempts from 10-14 ft. and 15-19 ft. Although he is efficient in that range, his coaches and teammates implore him to shoot more 3-pointers, but he has shown a reluctance to do so at times.

“We’ve been on our guys to shoot more threes, especially Brandon. He has it in him, and tonight he sees what happens when he shoots the shots when he’s open”, coach Willie Green stated during his postgame presser.

After the 5 consecutive 3’s made, Ingram finally missed a three to end the 3rd quarter. He received a standing ovation from the home crowd and his teammates. There seemed to be a Waiting to Exhale moment for B.I. as he appeared on the jumbotron. I believe everyone in the arena from players, coaches, teammates, gold jacket ushers, and others knew how pivotal this moment was for Ingram.

With or without the 3-point shot, B.I. is a special basketball player. He has climbed the basketball ladder: from high school – to Duke – to becoming the 2nd overall pick – to an NBA All-Star- and now leading this team playing this way. As his skills have improved throughout his journey, this one has been a struggle to break through. If B.I. embraces shooting consistently, 41 points in three quarters won’t be an anomaly. Just like New Orleans was cleansed with the heavy rain, maybe, Brandon Ingram washed some indecision with this performance.