None of the games were on national TV and New Orleans’ playoff hopes had long faded, but Alonzo Gee and his teammates gleaned a few things late last season that they hope will translate to improved results in 2016-17. Perhaps the biggest takeaways? That tighter defense and better ball movement on offense will allow them to come much closer to executing Alvin Gentry’s desired up-tempo pace and plan of attack.
“We learned our defense,” said Gee, who officially re-signed with New Orleans on July 22. “We focused and locked down at that end. To get easy points and play faster, you’ve got to get (defensive) stops.