There’s just something that never feels fair about putting the San Antonio Spurs and the New Orleans Pelicans together in the same sentence.
The Spurs are... well, the Spurs — maybe the most optimally run professional sports franchise in North America. They’re a five-time world champion. They’ve made the playoffs 18 consecutive seasons and 25 of the last 26 going back to the 1989-90 season. They’ve won at least 50 games every year but one since 1997. The lone exception was the lockout-shortened season in 1998, a year in which they won 74 percent of their games and the NBA title.