When he was asked after Thursday’s practice about Phoenix potentially not having All-Star guard Devin Booker (right hamstring strain) for the rest of Round 1 of the playoffs, New Orleans guard CJ McCollum used an analogy from nature to describe how the Pelicans must approach the situation.
“I told the team many times, a wounded animal is more dangerous than a healthy animal, because you don’t know what to expect,” the nine-year NBA veteran said of Phoenix being without its leading scorer. “You don’t know what other players are going to step up. Game-planning changes, opportunity changes. As a player who’s had a lot of roles in his career, you relish the opportunity for a large role on this type of stage.