Travis has been a busy man, following last weeks release of his brand new song off the soundtrack to Christopher Nolan’s highly-anticipated spy thriller Tenet. Travis Scott has announced his collaboration with the fast food giant McDonald’s.
Travis previously hinted that he was working on a “secret project” during his cover story with GQ. “Tell me if you’re fucking with this,” he told the magazine before adding, “Fire, right?”
Prior to the announcement, an ad for the “Travis Scott Meal” leaked online. After weeks of rumors and leaks, he takes to social media on Thursday, making it official.
In a leaked memo, obtained by Business Insider, McDonald’s chief marketing officer Morgan Flatley spoke about the collab.
“From his impossible-to-get Nike sneaker line, to a cereal collab with General Mills that sold out in 30 seconds, to a record-setting virtual concert series inside Fortnite, Travis Scott is the definition of big in culture,” reads the memo. “Beyond this, he is a true fan of McDonald’s and our cravable, iconic food. He will resonate and spark excitement with our youthful multicultural customers, and has a few surprises to delight our crew and ensure they are part of the excitement.”
The limited time meal will include a Quarter Pounder, Sprite, and French fries for the price $6
In addition to the limited time meal, there also appears to be a Happy Meal toy set including a figurine of Travis, complete with French fries, soft drink, burger, and even a mask.
This partnership is key to remaining relevant and winning over younger customers, Travis unique ability to see and have a hand in where culture is going coupled with his huge followership and social-media footprint, were sited as him being perfect person to reach people under the age of 34. As it’s becoming more and more challenging for brands to reach them.
Travis is reportedly the first of more celebrity collaborations McDonald’s is planning. “We can’t wait to share the rest of the lineup,” Flatley adds in the memo.
However the partnership has caused some controversy within McDonald’s, with some franchisees pushing back against a deal with the rapper. These franchisees felt that a deal with a rapper known partly for explicit lyrics was a departure from the chain’s more family-friendly voice.
But it seem like people have forgotten that the fast food giant has team up with rappers in the past to reach younger audiences. Pusha T wrote the “I’m Lovin’ It” jingle for McDonald’s, making him the composer of the fast food chain’s longest-running marketing campaign in its 76-year history.
Meanwhile, he continues to build anticipation for his next album, which fans have speculated is called Utopia.
Now with both series’ locked in with last nights Game 7 victory for the Houston Rockets, we proceed with the NBA Playoffs with the Semi-Finals. Having the respective Los Angeles teams advancing in strong fashions, we have both their opponents having both coming off 7 game series, leaving us with only the top 4 teams standing — Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Clippers, Denver Nuggets, Houston Rockets — so from this point on we continue the battle for the Conference Finals and so on.
And with all that being said, we rank our remaining four teams, speculating how they will fare approaching the next round.
1. Los Angeles Lakers (52-19, 1st in West, Won First Round vs. POR 4-1) – After dropping the first game in a fairly shocking manner against Damian Lillard and the Portland Trailblazers, the Lakers came back strong the remainder of the series, winning the next four in convincing fashions, being the firsts to punch their ticket to the next round in the Western Conference. It seemed like the Lakers needed a bit of a wake-up call heading into the first game, considering them having a 2-4 record in the bubble all despite being the #1 seeded team. Once they received said wake-up call, we saw some stellar performances from LeBron James and Anthony Davis leading their team to the series win.
A valiant and very commendable effort from the Trailblazers, however. They managed to earn their spot to participate in the Playoffs, and make a statement among the league with solid contributions from multiple players such as Jusuf Nurkic, C.J. McCollum, Carmelo Anthony, and of course Damian Lillard.
However, the pure size and talent on the Lakers roster could not be contained so easily, with both L.A. stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis getting the job done in all facets of the game. LeBron walked away from the series averaging a triple-double, on 27.4 points, 10.2 rebounds, and 10.2 assists a game on an outstanding 60% shooting while Davis averaged 29.8 points, 9.4 rebounds, and 4.2 assists on an equally impressive 57% shooting. Davis was able to almost do anything he wanted on the floor, whether in the catch and shoot or off the dribble, being an absolute nightmare for defending bigs.
The two were able to score and distribute to their teammates, which is something that needs to be highlighted when discussing LeBron James. James had a 54.8 assist percentage, meaning a little over half the passes he made led to a score for the Lakers. This breed of basketball is hard to stop when you have a whole team playing in rhythm within the offense. Another key component to the Lakers’ success thus far is their efficiency on the boards. Over the course of the 5-game series, the Lakers grabbed 242 total rebounds versus the Blazers’ 214, but other than that, the Lakers had a 27.3 Offensive Rebound % versus the Blazers’ 21.4. With some of the most notable bigs in years past on the Lakers roster with Dwight Howard, Anthony Davis, and Javale McGee, it comes as no surprise that they’d have a competitive edge against most other organizations regarding the rebounding category.
2. Los Angeles Clippers (49-23, 2nd in West, Won First Round vs. DAL 4-2) – This year’s reigning Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard had a hard fought series, but ultimately prevailed against the Dallas Mavericks alongside Paul George and crew. It’d take awhile for the Clippers to truly get the ball rolling against Luka Doncic and the Mavs, going back and forth through 4-games, ending the series in the next two after being tied up two a piece. The first four games were fairly tight, the victor only to be determined within late in the 4th or even overtime. It should also be said that the Mavericks were playing shorthanded, after losing Kristaps Porzingis 3 games in and Doncic battling an ankle injury throughout the course of the series. There is no taking away from the Clippers, however, keeping the foot on the gas and pulling out of the series to move on to the semi-finals.
A big thing when talking about the Los Angeles Clippers is the sheer amount of depth this team has, something that they accrued throughout the course of the season with additions like Reggie Jackson, Joakim Noah, and Marcus Morris, all who have made major impacts leading up to this point. This just added even more to what the Clippers organization already had heading into the year alongside Kawhi and PG, with names like Landry Shamet, Montrezl Harrell, and reigning 6th Man of the Year Lou Williams. This depth really made themselves known this series, contributing a considerable amount on both ends of the floor. This was also particularly helpful in games Paul George was having an off night.
As they progress throughout the Playoffs, we look to see if the Clippers are capable of maintaining such an offensive onslaught, walking out of the series against the Mavericks with an Offensive Rating of 122.3 versus the Mavs’ 113. Although everyone’s scouting reports for the Clippers has Kawhi Leonard and Paul George at the very top, teams also need to keep a close eye on the rest of the team, specifically Marcus Morris, who has shown to be very beneficial for the team, giving the Clippers another option on offense as well as a solid defender.
3. Denver Nuggets (46-27, 3rd in West, Won First Round vs. UTAH 4-3) – The Nuggets had a long fought battle in the opening series of the NBA Playoffs against the Jazz, coming out victorious with Jamal Murray leading the way. The Nuggets, despite being third in their conference, to me always feel like an underdog in the Playoffs simply due to the lack of the big names like a LeBron James or a Steph Curry on their team. This in no way is discrediting the Nuggets, however, in fact quite the opposite. They’ve managed to assemble a team through drafting and development and be a legit contender thus far into the Playoffs. Of course you have the usual suspects for the Nuggets leading the way in Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic, but it’s imperative to acknowledge the impact that Michael Porter Jr. and Jerami Grant have made in that first series.
Finally being able to get on the floor this year, Michael Porter Jr. has proven to the league that he belongs. Through 7 games he averaged 12 points and 7 rebounds 45% shooting. Additionally, after being traded away from the Thunder this past season, Jerami Grant has only gotten better through his young career. Grant averaged 11.3 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 1 block a game. It has been great to see the development of these younger players, growing into legitimate threats on both ends of the floor. Nuggets fans can only hope that this remains consistent moving on throughout the Playoffs.
Another thing that Nuggets fans hope to prove consistent is the absolute tear Jamal Murray has been so far this Playoffs. Murray was unreal last series, averaging 31.6 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 6.3 assists on an impressive 55% shooting. It remains to be seen whether or not Murray will keep up these kinds of numbers, but would definitely prove beneficial heading into their series against the Clippers.
4. Houston Rockets (44-28 , 4th in West, Won First Round vs. OKC 4-3) – Similarly to the Nuggets, the Rockets came out a hard fought series winning game 7 against the Thunder. The Rockets have been on a roller coaster so far this Playoffs and we’re just now past the first round. The series against the Thunder quite literally could’ve gone either way, with the entirety of the series coming down to a single possession in the Thunders’ hands, ultimately thwarted by a clutch defensive effort by none other than James Harden. This punched their ticket as the last team to advance to the semi-finals.
We’ve discussed before that the Rockets would be taking on a new school of thought when they traded away Clint Capela, opting in for a small ball approach to the game. Although deemed successful, it was no easy feat. Additionally, the Rockets Russell Westbrook come back into the line-up after missing the first four. Although providing a solid contribution for the Rockets, it was James Harden who led the team to victory, averaging 29.7 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 8 assists on 47% shooting. So far we’ve learned that the “live by the three die by the three” mindset is in fact viable, but things only get more challenging from this point on.
The Rockets have been getting solid overall production on the offensive from a lot of players on the team, from Russell Westbrook. Jeff Green,Danuel House, Eric Gordon, and Robert Covington, all averaging double digit points through the series. For the Rockets, however, offense isn’t the issue. They’ll need to be even more so locked in on the defense end in hopes of progressing through the Playoffs from this point on.
I’d like to describe this series as a David versus Goliath story. Not in the sense that one team has insurmountable odds pit against them, but more so the schemes of small ball versus traditional basketball. Two very different schools of thought at play. The Rockets will most likely find difficulty in the paint on both ends of the floor, while the Lakers need to focus on locking down the perimeter. The Rockets’ tallest players that they’ve been playing at the Center position thus far are Jeff Green and Robert Covington listed at 6’8″ and 6’7″, respectively. The trouble their lies for the Rockets is that for the Lakers, that is the roughly the average height of their Small Forwards, with LeBron James, Markieff Morris, and Kyle Kuzma. As previously stated it is imperative the Rockets find a way to lock down the Lakers bigs before things turn into old school bully ball with a splash of Showtime Lakers. On the other side of things, the Lakers will have to prove to be active on the perimeter defensively, limiting the three point shot and contesting those that get taken. The very thought of having to constantly run shooters off the perimeter possession after possession is draining, and with that the Lakers are going to have to remain disciplined to stick to their plans defensively. If either team can get the edge on the defensive end, it will surely open themselves up on the offensive end, something that both teams surely want to get going early in this series.
I know I just used this theme for the other series, the Clippers vs. Nuggets is also a David and Goliath situation, more so in the traditional sense. Fans and critics league wide have the Clippers making a deep run in the Playoffs, and the Denver Nuggets are just the next obstacle in the way for their path to a Championship. This isn’t insinuating that the Clippers are going to win the series, however. I’d be remiss to count out Denver and the effort that they’ve put forth both this season as well as years past. The Nuggets were a household name in the Playoff Picture from 2003-2013 and have recently have found themselves returning to the Playoffs since 2018, typically seeded highly. With the momentum that the Nuggets have after their Game 7 victory against the Jazz, they’ll surely be bringing everything they have while facing the Clippers. But it will take just that to beat Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, and the Clippers, everything you have. As previously discussed, on top of having two of the biggest names in the league, the sheer depth that the Clippers have will prove to be quite the challenge for the underdog Nuggets.
In one of the more shocking recent developments, the Brooklyn Nets made Steve Nash the 23rd head coach in the Nets’ franchise history, as reported by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski on Thursday morning. Nash will sign with the Nets on a four-year deal.
Hall of Fame guard Steve Nash has signed a four-year contract to become the next coach of the Brooklyn Nets, sources tell ESPN.
Nash, a Hall of Fame guard and two-time winner of the League’s Most Valuable Player award, has never had any prior head coaching experience, but brings a strong relationship with Nets star Kevin Durant, brought about during his consultant role with the Golden State Warriors.
Brooklyn is expected to keep Jacque Vaughn in a predominantly leading coaching role as one of the highest-paid assistants in the NBA, as he made a strong impression on Nets General Manager Sean Marks and Nets owner Joseph Tsai after taking over for the recently ex-coach Kenny Atkinson back in February, including the league’s restart in Orlando with the Nets’ makeshift team. Vaughn would’ve likely been the Nets choice had Nash been unconvinced of taking the job, sources confirmed.
As it goes for the Nets, Nash brings a plethora of knowledge to the coaching position as one of the greatest guards to ever play the position, and more specifically, experience to guide Kyrie Irving. Another main contributor to this signing: Nets GM Marks was a teammate of Nash’s with the Suns, and has kept a good relationship with him through the years.
OFFICIAL: The Brooklyn Nets have named Steve Nash as the 23rd head coach in the franchise’s NBA history. pic.twitter.com/SG8OoN3a8g
Since his retirement in 2015, Nash had been in the circle of potential names to fill vacancies of different executive and coaching responsibilities. This could end up being a big-time hire if all goes well in his first season, and with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving leading the charge for a new-look Nets team, Nash’s inaugural season could see the Nets eclipse 50 wins an immediate powerhouse in the East.
The Thunder and Rockets put on a show tonight in Game 7. This game was as close as it could get and down to the wire just how it’s supposed to be with a 4th and 5th seed. All series long the Rockets were leaving Lugentz Dort open and challenging him to beat them. Well, tonight the undrafted rookie made the Rockets pay big time as he finished with a career-high 30 points. Tonight Dort was shooting with confidence and he was able to attack the rim when given the chance. Tonight Lugentz Dort shot 10/21 from the field but made the best of the 3 point opportunities as he shot 6/12 for 50%. He’s the youngest player since LeBron James to score that many points in a playoff game. The Thunder took a chance on Lugentz Dort and that chance proved to pay off big time. The Thunder signed Dort to a four-year deal worth $5.4 million dollars but Dort proved that you can’t put a number on heart/energy. Tonight was all about the play of Lugentz Dort and the way he stepped up in the biggest spotlight moment. Not too many people can score 30 points in a game while holding James Harden to 17 points on the night. All series long Dort was making it tough on Harden and after tonight he’s gained a lot more fans and respect around the NBA.
The Thunder had 5 players in double figures on the night and it was tough down the stretch getting good looks. OKC’s usually the clutch team down the stretch but they were only able to score 6 points in the final minutes of the game. Chris Paul finished with a triple-double of 19 points, 12 assists, and 11 rebounds on the night. CP3 was able to get to his spots but the ball just didn’t go in for him tonight like in previous games. Even when he’s struggling from the field Paul was able to put his team in a position to win. CP3 showed everyone that doubted him that he’s still in great shape and that he’s still as elite as ever. Chris Paul willed this team throughout the year and the last couple of plays didn’t go as OKC wanted but sometimes these moments are a great lesson. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 19 points as he was able to bounce back in this game tonight. SGA had a huge 3 pointer late in the game that put OKC up by 1 with less than a minute. SGA was aggressive tonight and attacked the paint while hitting his jumpers. All this showed was that OKC has a bright star on their hands and someone that’s not scared of the big moments. Shai came back to the NBA restart ready to go locked in but OKC just fell short this time. This was only his second season in the NBA and he put the league on notice moving forward that he’s a rising star and has so much promise.
Danilo Gallinari and Dennis Schröder played okay but if they would have added a little bit throughout the game OKC could have won. Both of them combined for 16 points on the night and weren’t playing up to the caliber they usually play at. Credit the Rockets for all the switching that they did on the defensive end. Both Gallinari and Schröder came into Game 7 averaging a combined 35 ppg so if they added a little bit more to their performance tonight things could be different. Tonight Steven Adams added 10 points and 9 rebounds as the biggest guy in this series and played very good on the rebounds all series. The Thunder had great role players and both those guys did a great job on the season and stepped up when no one even thought they could. So many people counted this OKC team out but they had 6th Man of the Year and Coach of the Year candidates. This team had a 0.2% chance to make the playoffs and they exceeded all expectations.
The Houston Rockets will be heading to the second round to play the LA Lakers who are well-rested waiting for them. Before they could do that the OKC Thunder gave them all they could handle in Game 7. Tonight James Harden didn’t have it going as he finished with 17 points and wasn’t able to get anything going on the offensive end. It was Harden’s defense that showed up big time as he was able to block Lugentz Dort on a 3 point attempt that sealed the game for Houston. Harden struggled but got a combined 61 points from his teammates tonight that showed up in the biggest moments(Westbrook, Covington, Gordon). Those three played lights out tonight and made some big shots down the stretch to help the Rockets get to the next round. Westbrook was able to hit on his midrange tonight and was able to attack when he wanted with smaller defenders on him. Overall the Rockets proved for this round that the small ball worked and it also could have saved Mike D’Antoni’s job as well. The Rockets will be playing the Lakers after this hard-fought series against OKC.
In Brandon Ingram’s dimly lit living room, where he just so happened to seclude himself in to answer another regulatory conference call with New Orleans Pelicans Team Governor Gayle Benson, Ingram posed in his regular, demure-yet-professional affect display, awaiting some further news about his franchise going forward.
Things are rather quiet, for all we know, in the life of the first-year Pelican. All situated from his return to his home (that he would probably admit isn’t all that accommodated in) in New Orleans from the Orlando bubble, his conference call to discuss other politics and business you and I would be a fly on the wall to listen in on didn’t quite go the exact way he envisioned.
It’s a different year for everyone. The onsetting of the COVID-19 pandemic has put everything on standby, and some best-laid plans have gone awry for even the most prepared and calculated. But that’s been another curve and bend along the winding road that is Ingram’s career, and not to be too cliche’, life as a whole.
From mountainous highs of getting ACC Rookie of the Year honors and AP All-American votes, and being the second overall pick four years ago to the lowly depths of being faced with the realities of career-threatening ailments like his Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) sustained last year that ended his tenure in Los Angeles all while having to re-shift his focus to acclimating to a new city and new culture after being a piece shipped away in last summer’s blockbuster Anthony Davis-to-LA trade, it’s never been a straight and narrow path for the 22-year-old.
An unpredictable fortune had been bestowed upon his destiny in the NBA as if he’d gotten a bad palm reading from an unqualified fortune teller. But you can’t chalk the evening of August 31 up on the board of negative unpredictables, per Ingram’s initial surprise when some new “board members” arrived on last night’s zoom call.
Mrs. Benson went on to introduce some guests of hers into their zoom call, which just so happened to be Brandon’s family members in Donald (father), Joann (mother), and Brittany Ingram (older sister).
He wasn’t the quickest to display his jubilation when he saw three of the most important people in his life but ultimately cracked that usually dour poker face he’s known to show just about all the time, turning it into a front-facing-camera-indirect smile once they made the announcement that Ingram was to be given the 2019-20 Kia Most Improved Player award with claps of pride and approval reverberating through his phone screen.
“We wanted you to know how proud we are,” father Donald Ingram said. “You worked hard, extremely hard, to achieve this honor. It’s been a pleasure watching you make it to the All-Star game and become the most-improved player in the NBA. From us to you, congratulations. We just want you to know that we love you.”
The former pride of North Carolina when it comes to hoops was humble in his acceptance of the award, thanking Benson and the entire Pelicans organization for the honor.
Later on, In a zoom call with myself and other journalists, Pelicans Vice President of Player Operations helped to induct Ingram into an elite class of award winners that include MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, world champion Pascal Siakam, and All-Stars in Paul George and Victor Oladipo. This time, Ingram took the press conference to the passenger seat of his car, again in seclusion from outside distractions.
Ingram would then go on to give his honest and succinct statement about winning his first-ever Kia NBA award:
“I just want to thank God for the ability to be on this basketball floor every single day and every single night,” Ingram said. And for me to be healthy, I always just think back to the first day I got drafted and how much growth that I have had and also the growth that I needed to get to the player that I want to be.”
Ingram continued in his speech, saying “From day 1, coming to New Orleans, they came with open arms, and asked me me many questions with how I could be comfortable with new coaches around, giving me the freedom and opportunity to be myself on and off the basketball floor. And everything was pretty easy with the transition from LA,” Ingram confessed.
“I got to put in the work every night. I had guys around me that wanted to work just as hard as me. My teammates kept me encouraged every single day and they definitely helped me get in this position right now and I definitely thank my teammates all, my coaches and everybody that was around me to make sure that I’m putting my best foot forward every single day.”
And surely, what a transition it was, in more ways than one. Ingram mentioned in a Q&A segment some information about his motivations when having one of those unpredictable life obstacles of a major move from that of a large market like Los Angeles to a rather smaller one in the Big Easy.
“It gave me lessons and things to motivate myself, and they told me that when you put in the work — you put in whatever it is, you’ll get something out of it,” Ingram said when asked of the mental adjustments he needed to make when he was in LA, as well as to the mentality he had when he was traded to the Pelicans this past off-season.
Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports
“The change of scenery was great. Coming from [Los Angeles], there a bunch of distractions,” Ingram explained. “You can get kinda spoiled in the sense of everything that’s around LA and you never really know what’s going on until you’re out of it. Me going back and forth to the gym, me getting something to eat and going back home, whatever it was, it just took me out of focus [in Los Angeles] and away from where I needed to be,” Ingram said.
“Even sometimes, I realized even more how I could’ve been watching film and studying the little details of things. The move to N.O. definitely helped me see things more clearly.” He also confessed that he was still motivated to as ever to be the best teammate and player he could be. “I’m still motivated to keep it going,” Ingram said.
Coming from playing in such a media-saturated environment like Los Angeles, and for a rebuilding Lakers team from 2016-2019, Ingram’s offensive role and the confidence the organization had in him to produce was perhaps the biggest change by the time he got to New Orleans. Averaging 15.5 points per game with splits of .456/.338/.659 in his first three seasons, Ingram found new life as the Pels’ star wing, who former coach Alvin Gentry put in the spotlight right away.
In a new system that had a bunch of space to operate in, Ingram vastly improved his scoring numbers from those measly 15 points that you’d expect from a young player to put up when they’re two-to-three years in the league, and bumped them up to an astounding 23.8 points per game with splits of .463/.391/.859.
More importantly, once the numbers started to rise, so did the overall win percentage for his team. As Ingram only won 26 games his rookie season, 35 games in his sophomore season, and 37 wins in a year where the Lakers were marred by a litany of injuries to stars like LeBron James and Lonzo Ball, B.I. nearly willed his Pelicans to the playoffs in his first year, winning 30 games while getting the invite to the Orlando bubble to finish their regular season, where he would securely confirm himself to be the Most Improved Player with his averages of 19.8 points per game in the abbreviated season.
Ashley Landis/AP
His scoring numbers were noticeably shortened due to his lack of touches in LA, albeit when there were other primary scorers for the Lakers like D’Angelo Russell, Josh Hart, Lonzo Ball, LeBron James and Kyle Kuzma throughout the years. Ingram’s averaged 11.8 shots attempts per game left over from his Laker days saw a significant boost in his first year in New Orleans, as the Kinston, North Carolina substantially bumped up his amount of shot attempts in his first year as a Pelican (17.8 shots per game).
In the award ceremony, Pelicans Vice President of Basketball Operations David Griffin then went on to address the media and his first-time All Star with his own kind remarks, citing his passion for wanting to be the hardest worker on the team and the leading-by-example guy both the inexperienced and grizzled vets looked to as a muse for high achievement.
“Brandon, we’ve talked a lot about this, even in the bubble, we talked about the likelihood that this would happen for you. We were really excited as an organization but what’s really important to me about this is the work rate that brought this about,” Griffin said.
“This isn’t something where B.I. just showed up at the gym. We’ve talked a lot about this. He’s — he did two-a-days every practice day this year. He’s one of the only young players I’ve ever had to beg to work less. He pushes himself to incredible lengths to get better, and he loves the game, he has passion for the game in a way that very, very few players do, that certainly players his age rarely have,” the Pels’ VP continued.
“The work rate, the attention to detail, and just the love and joy of playing with his teammates that Brandon has. Brandon, I’m going to embarrass you for just one minute here — when B.I. first got on campus in New Orleans in September, he was with some of the player development coaches and he told the coaches ‘I believe I have greatness in me, and I want you to do anything you can to drag it out of me. Dog, cuss me out, work me too hard, do whatever you gotta do, but I want to be great.’ And he dedicated himself to that in a way that I can’t ever say I’ve ever really seen a player do, and certainly not at his age.”
Griffin concluded, “And so it’s our honor as a franchise to be represented by a human being that loves this the way Brandon does and frankly, loves the community of New Orleans and communities from Kinston the way he does. This is as much about the human Brandon is as much as he is the basketball player. I’m just honored to be a part of that.”
Ingram further attested to that desire to be great, and went into detail about where that need to succeed and be great comes from.
“First, i think it starts from, seeing my Mom and Dad work every single day to make sure everything was straight,” Ingram confessed. “I think they put me first before anything, whether they had it or not. I’ve seen my Dad get like two hours of sleep each day, just waking up, going to work and then coming back home, taking a shower and then going to the gym, maybe to referee some nights, but it was hard to make sure the family was straight. My mom had worked at her job for about 35 years so to see her put that dedication in and stick to what she was doing definitely was a skill to me.”
And in further discussing his work ethic, he also went into detail about the DVT he had last season, and how its ability in cutting his previous season short put things into perspective.
“It made me want to not take things for granted,” Ingram said. “I know that it wasn’t an injury that would’ve taken me out for long but I knew it was something that woke me up, and it was something I needed to tell me to take advantage of everything while I have it.”
And in earning such an accolade, Ingram mentioned how special it was to get this high regard for the effort and contributions to his new team in his first year and hearing his parents announce him getting the award, saying that seeing his support system in his family and his teammates like Lonzo Ball and Josh Hart (who were there in the initial zoom meeting with Gayle Benson when Ingram was presented with the award) was something he’d never forget, due to all the hours he put in.
“They’ve been there every step of the way,” Ingram added. “I can call each one of those guys and they’d be there for me. Just to have those guys tell me that stuff was definitely special.”
As for the immediate future in New Orleans for both he and the Pelicans, it’s evident and clear as day he’s set to be a pillar for a new age of Pelicans basketball with the likes of Zion Williamson, Lonzo Ball, and the rest of the Pels’ young and inquisitive core, never mind the impending oncoming of a new coach with a new scheme and looming talks of Ingram’s designation as an unrestricted free agent (UFA) once this season ends.
“[My contract] is something that we’ve discussed and that we’ll continue to discuss,” B.I. briefly said, shutting down any advanced about contractual inquiries. “All we care about now is winning basketball games and I think we have young guys that’s learning how to play the game, and in trying to find what they do on a basketball court, we also have to figure out a way that we can get wins in those games.
Ingram went on, “We have to make sure those guys aren’t going through that stress and that guys are able to do what they want on a basketball floor so we can all mesh for each other. Whatever coach just wants to come in and win and get the best out of us and whatever way it is in a winning fashion, that’s really all it is at this point.”
There’s no doubt about the type of player and leader Brandon Ingram wants to be. And more importantly, as per his numbers, the major improvement he made didn’t have anything to do with his numbers, but more of getting his voice to be more resounding in the locker rooms as the number one guy. And in New Orleans’ pursuit of a playoff spot and a title in the next coming years, those leadership qualities are going to be paramount, at least in the eyes of the MIP.
“This year I had was the year of the most fun playing basketball the way that I wanted to play. Having an opportunity to be in the gym with my teammates who love to do the same thing that I love to do, seeing some of the same guys come back to the gym all the time always asking, asking and asking for advice on the basketball floor so they can get better in their game for our team.”
For Ingram, that was the most enjoyable moment for him. He went on to say that he didn’t think he had have a favorite stat or anything that made him the happiest or motivated him the most. His chemistry, and long-lasting impact to those within the Pels’ locker room — whether they be coaches, teammates or other personnel just as locked in as he is — was his biggest takeaway for his first year in New Orleans.
“For the type of player I want to be, I want to be well rounded all across the board. But what stuck out to me the most was just how much fun I had with my teammates and seeing the attitudes that they had going into the gym every single day.”
