The Loop
Alvin Gentry shows up to press conference buzzed, because it's been that kind of NBA season
Garrett Ellwood
As my colleague Coleman Bentley likes to point out, the National Basketball Association has morphed into a soap opera. In case any context is lost in that statement, there's no positive connotation to that comparison. Though we're fans of the league, it's an observation that's been on the nose the past few seasons. Jimmy Butler staged a hissy-fit at practice that, coincidentally, went right into an ESPN interview. Draymond Green called Kevin Durant, the two-time reigning Finals MVP, a "*****" in the middle of a game. Kyrie Irving said he doesn't want fame months after starring in his own movie. J.R. Smith threw a bowl of soup at a coach and forgot the score of an NBA Finals game.
But perhaps the biggest circus has been in New Orleans, where Anthony Davis requested a trade despite having two years left on his contract. When such demands are made, 99.99 percent of the time, they are fulfilled. This was the aberration, as Davis' agency not only bungled the situation, but Pelicans' owner Gayle Benson—who recently inherited the team—is foreign to this type of sports drama, and was in no hurry to facilitate LeBron James' the Brow's petition.
Which is fine. Alas, this nonsense has produced a list of casualties, chief among them the Pelicans' season. The team was in the midst of a playoff push when Davis made his plea public; they are now well out of the noise.
So you can understand why, after a rare win against the postseason-bound Utah Jazz, coach Alvin Gentry was in a celebratory mood.
Perhaps too celebratory, as evidenced by this video of a clearly-buzzed Gentry with reporters:
Keep in mind, there's just a 20-minute interstitial between game's end and when coaches meet with the media. Makes you wonder what's really in those Gatorade cups.
Of course, if anyone deserves a beer, it's Gentry.