Coach Alvin Gentry pleased with Pelicans’ youth stepping up in win over Warriors

New Orleans Pelicans head coach Alvin Gentry is optimistic the burn his team’s young core is getting in the wake of multiple injuries to the team’s veterans will contribute to a winning culture long-term.

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The win might have come against the league-worst Golden State Warriors, but New Orleans Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry was pleased with how his team responded just the same.

Gutting out their fourth win of the season with a late offensive outburst despite not having more than half their roster available due to injury, the team came away with a 108-100 victory through the contributions of both their veteran backcourt and a solid starting debut by rookie big man Jaxson Hayes.

Gentry acknowledged the extraordinary play of the Warriors’ young core who have been doing much of the team’s heavy lifting, particularly forward Eric Paschall, who logged his second 30-point outing of the season in the Warrior’s loss.

“They [have] a bunch of guys that are trying to establish [themselves] in the league,” he offered (via the New Orleans Pelicans). “But I thought we did everything that we needed to [get] the win. You know, J.J. [Redick] made a big shot … Jrue [Holiday] made a couple of big shots … to come away with a win is what we wanted to do and that’s what we accomplished.”

Both teams had off nights in terms of efficiency, and the Pels had trouble with the Warrior’s frontcourt, particularly Paschall — a fact not lost on Gentry. “Obviously, we didn’t shoot the ball very good,” he added, referencing the team’s 41.6 % shooting from the floor on the night.

“We still continue to struggle with keeping the ball out of the paint. “We’ve got to do a much better job,”, he added.

The Pelicans coach saw a lot of positive growth for the mostly-younger players who were able to step up and provide quality minutes in the wake of so many veterans being out hurt, especially Hayes (10 points and boards apiece with 3 blocks), forward Nicolo Melli (16 points and 5 rebounds) and guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker (19 points, 5 boards and 4 assists).

“I don’t think anything can take the place of experience of being in the game,” noted the New Orleans coach. “Learning from your mistakes or just figuring out what you can do to help the team.”

Gentry is optimistic the win is helping to lay a foundation for success once the team’s more seasoned players are able to return to action. With Lonzo Ball (hip), Brandon Ingram (knee), Derrick Favors (back), Jahlil Okafor (ankle), Frank Jackson (neck) and Josh Hart (knee) all out for the short term and rookie phenom Zion Wilson out until at least mid-December, the trio of healthy rookies may yet see some burn over the Pels’ next few games.

“Hopefully, this is going to be something that helps us down the road,” explained Gentry, “because when we do get healthy and get all the players back, then I think our depth will help even more because these guys will be put in a situation where they’ve got to play 25, 35 minutes.”

“At the end of the day, you have to be out there,” he added “You have to experience what it’s like in rotation, what it’s like setting the screen and rolling to the basket and the decisions that you have to make.”

With a tough west coast trip ahead after Tuesday’s home game against the Portland Trail Blazers, the Pelicans may have to settle for mostly moral victories in the coming weeks. But should Gentry’s suspicions about the value of live game action prove correct, the future of the team ought to be the brighter for it.