As Brandon ingram entered the locker room after reaching a career high of 49 points as the New Orleans Pelicans finished with the streak of 10 straight wins by Utah Jazz with a wild win of 138-132, Ball had a map.
Ingram was still in the field for his post-game TV interview, so Ball made sure that every player in the locker room had a bottle of water - most grabbed two.
When Ingram entered, the players did their best to remain calm at first before spraying the 22-year-old with water from all directions. Televisions, lockers, floor - everything was soaking wet.
"Man, I tried to get out as quickly as possible," said Ingram with a smile. "I know the first person who threw something at me has to pay for my next hairstyle. "
It was a cheerful atmosphere for the Pelicans after what appeared to be an infallible victory was jeopardized by a call to end the settlement.
Until 122-121 with 0.2 seconds remaining after Ingram hit Royce O’Neale to give the Pelicans a lead, Gobert fouled the rookie Pelicans center Jaxson Hayes before the ball goes to Utah.
After an official review, it was determined that Hayes had grabbed Gobert's arm and sent Gobert to the line.
It was the second time in less than two weeks that officials had played a big role in a Jazz-Pelicans match in New Orleans.
On January 6, officials decreed that Gobert had not fouled Ingram during his time to the basket at the end of the time limit and that Utah escaped with a two-point win.
The NBA’s last two minutes report the next day said that Gobert had made contact with Ingram’s arm and that the Pelicans should have had two free throws in an attempt to tie him up.
Utah nearly escaped with another victory, but Gobert only hit one of two free throws to send the match into overtime.
Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry was excited by the call, but said his players had a soothing message on the bench: "They said, 'Don't worry, we will win the overtime game. »»
Pelicans Center Derrick's Favors, who finished with 21 points and 11 rebounds and had a team record of seven in overtime, said the grouping on the bench helped the team resume the game.
With the triumph, New Orleans went to 9-3 since December 23, with only the Los Angeles Lakers, Milwaukee Bucks and Jazz having better results during this period. And with Zion Williamson expected to debut next week, the Pelicans also have the easiest remaining schedule in the league, according to the ESPN BPI.
So the only bad thing to watch after the game was that Ingram was one point away from his first 50 point game in his career. But it's not something that worries him too much.
