For Herb Jones, there’s no place quite like sweet home Alabama.
The New Orleans Pelicans' forward can hardly wait for Tuesday night when he gets a chance to suit up in Birmingham, Alabama, for a preseason game against the Houston Rockets.
“I’m super excited,” Jones said. “I don’t know about the rest of the team, but I’m ready to get back.”
Before making his mark with the Pelicans as one of the NBA’s best defensive players, Jones was a star in Alabama. Hale High School, located in Moundville about an hour away from Birmingham, retired Jones’ No. 2 jersey last December. Jones led Hale to its first state championship as a senior. Then he went on to play at the University of Alabama, where he was named the SEC Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year by the coaches.
He’ll likely be one of the most popular players on the court at Legacy Arena, just like he always is when the Pelicans are in the area. This is the third time in four years the team has played in Birmingham, home of the Pelicans’ G League team (the Birmingham Squadron).
“Herb is from there, so I’m sure he will have the loudest cheers when he steps on the floor,” said Pelicans' coach Willie Green. “They are big-time sports fans there and they love supporting their teams and we’re excited to get there and play a really good game.”
This is the third preseason game for the Pelicans, and the first in over a week. The first two games were played in Australia.
“We needed this rest time to recover from the Australia trip,” Green said. “We’ll get to Birmingham and get after it.”
The Pelicans went 2-0 in Australia, but they will step up in weight class Tuesday against the Rockets. Houston finished second in the Western Conference last season and added superstar Kevin Durant to its roster during the offseason.
“They already had a good team,” Green said. “They are going to be a team that is right in the mix. But our focus is always on us and how can we continue to step on the floor and incorporate our concepts defensively.”
A main point of emphasis for Tuesday’s game is matching the Rockets’ physical play.
“It’s really about us taking all of our film work, concepts offensively and defensively and applying them to a game against a really good opponent,” Green said. “We know Houston last year was a really good defensive team. Physical. So it will be a good test for us to see how we match up. Can we be as physical or more physical? Can we execute against their physicality offensively?”
Green expects his starters to play more minutes than they did in Australia. Zion Williamson, for example, played 15 minutes in each of the two games against Melbourne United and South East Melbourne Phoenix.
“We’ll try to bump their minutes up a little more for this third game,” Green said. “And then evaluate our team and see where we are. We’ll probably dial it down a little bit in the fourth game. It’s an evaluation to see how their bodies feel. But definitely want to get a good run in this next game.”
After the game against the Rockets, the Pelicans will conclude preseason play Thursday in Orlando, Florida, against the Magic. The Pelicans play their regular season opener on the road against the Memphis Grizzlies on Oct. 22. They play their first home game on Oct. 24 against the San Antonio Spurs.
For Jones, his first home game comes Tuesday night in Birmingham. He is ready for the reception he’ll get.
“It’s the crib,” Jones said. “I don’t expect to see anything different. It’s always great to see some family and friends.”