New Orleans Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram has had a fantastic rookie season with the Pels. Ingram was traded to the Pelicans for Anthony Davis, along with Lonzo Ball, Josh Hart, and a whole bunch of draft picks. BI has led the Pelicans all season, being named to the all-star team in February.
Ingram is a leading candidate for the Most Improved Player trophy this season. His numbers have shown a sharp incline, and many are already predicting his victory. This includes his coach Alvin Gentry, who spoke to Pelicans’ reporter Jim Eichenhofer.
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“I’ll be very disappointed if he’s not the Most Improved Player, because he took a tremendous jump this year, in making the All-Star team and just overall, being that guy we could count on at the end of the game.”
Alvin Gentry on Brandon Ingram: "I’ll be very disappointed if he’s not the Most Improved Player, because he took a tremendous jump this year, in making the All-Star team and just overall, being that guy we could count on at the end of the game."
— Jim Eichenhofer (@Jim_Eichenhofer) July 18, 2020
New Orleans Pelicans leading Brandon Ingram to the trophy?
Brandon Ingram had a strong season up until the break. He was averaging 24.3 points on 46.6% shooting from the field and 38.7% from three. However, there are two major drawbacks to Ingram’s candidacy for this award. First, he hasn’t added a sound defensive aspect to his game yet. Second, his team is below .500 wins.
Ingram is playing inspired basketball. But it wasn’t translating to wins until Zion Williamson came in January.
Some of Ingram’s competitors’ resume’s read better. Luka Doncic is an MVP candidate on a playoff team, who’s very much in the running for MIP. Bam Adebayo’s Miami Heat are sitting comfortably in the Eastern Conference. So is Jayson Tatum with the Celtics. This is because their teams have been consistently winning through the season. Ingram has put up empty stats for the most part of the season.
Despite what has been said, Ingram may be the one to take the trophy home. Not many people are looking to vote for Luka in the MIP race, as he is top-three in the MVP battle. Tatum’s sophomore season had a slump, but people remember his strong rookie year. Bam Adebayo is his biggest opponent, but he isn’t the number one option on his team. Ingram has led the Pelicans alongside Jrue Holiday.
The conversation includes Ingram the most, so it’s probably his to lose right now.
