Dein erstes Forum » ea and Horia Tecau of

This story is part of ESPN The Magazines Oct. 31 NBA Preview Issue. Subscribe today!New Orleans PelicansOverall: 66 Title track: 107 Ownership: 86 Coaching: 91 Players: 101 Fan relations: 66 Affordability: 11 Stadium experience: 85 Bang for the buck: 41 Change from last year: -30It was all good just a year ago. The Pelicans jumped 41 spots in these rankings after their first winning season in the Anthony Davis era, and that 45-win season seemed to foretell great things for the team and its leading man. Alas, an encore with more starting lineups (42) than wins (30) pushed the Pels back to the bottom half.Whats goodEven after a 30-win season, the Pelicans rank in the top third of teams in bang for the buck, thanks to the leagues cheapest tickets. At just $30.20 on average, Pelicans tickets are $25 below the NBA average and a full $99 cheaper than the leagues most expensive ticket (the Knicks). Once youre in the door, you get to watch a superstar in the prime of his career. Although doubts have emerged after his left knee debridement in March made it four straight seasons with fewer than 70 regular-season games played, Davis is still only 23 years old and boasts a statistical profile befitting some of the very best in history.Whats badA season ravaged by injuries -- the Pelicans lost 351 games to injury or illness, second-most in the past decade -- forced the front office to undergo a major facelift this past summer. While the likes of Solomon Hill and ETwaun Moore will provide much-needed versatility, particularly for the leagues 28th-ranked defense, the losses of Ryan Anderson and Eric Gordon leave the supporting cast a bit light on star power and scoring punch. As a result, the Pels take a big hit here in players (down 52 spots to 101st) and title track (down 30 to 107, New Orleans worst showing).Whats newThe Benson familys courtroom drama, in which owner Tom Benson is trying to move control of a family trust to his wife, not his daughter, put a 32-point drag on the teams ownership score, which is now down to 86th overall and 23rd in the NBA. But if New Orleans can live up to its reputation as the countrys best party host with the 2017 All-Star Game -- relocated to New Orleans after the league moved it from Charlotte -- the Pelicans could bump that back up. Another fan favorite: The Pelicans are putting courtside seats normally reserved for media on sale to the public, offering fans the unique experience of hearing coach Alvin Gentrys colorful in-game monologues loud and clear.Next: Orlando Magic?| Full rankings Bruno Fernando Hawks Jersey . 1 position. The Mustangs (6-0), who beat Queens 50-31 last weekend, earned 17 first-place votes and 287 points in voting by the Football Reporters of Canada. Western was last ranked first in the country in October 2011. Pete Maravich Jersey . -- Eastern Kentucky thrives off creating havoc for others. https://www.thehawkslockerroom.com/Pete-Maravich-City-Edition-Jersey/ . Down by seven with 90 seconds left in regulation, thats where they looked comfortable. Jabari Parker Hawks Jersey .25 million option on reliever Jose Veras. Alex Len Jersey . - Goaltender Philippe Desrosiers of the Rimouski Oceanic has broken a shutout record that was only three months old in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. RIO DE JANEIRO -- What was shaping up as a very long day of Olympic tennis for Rafael Nadal began shortly after 11 a.m., when he played the first point of what would become a victory that put him in the singles quarterfinals.Then, after a break of less than 2 hours, Nadal went back out on court for a mens doubles semifinal Thursday and won that, too, assuring himself of leaving the Rio de Janeiro Games with at least one medal for Spain.Apparently, though, that was enough for the 14-time Grand Slam champion, who pulled out of mixed doubles shortly before he was scheduled to pick up his racket yet again in the evening for a first-round match in that event.Nadal, the gold medalist in singles eight years ago, missed the 2012 London Olympics with a knee injury and spoke about making up for that in Brazil.The last-minute decision not to remain in all three draws he was eligible for this time might create questions about how hes feeling at the moment. But when hes been on court, Nadal has shown zero lingering effects of an injured left wrist that kept him off tour for 2+ months and forced him to withdraw from the French Open before the third round and skip Wimbledon altogether.Its not been an easy season for me, Nadal said. Two weeks ago, I really didnt know if I will have the chance to be here and compete in this Olympic Games, because the practice (time) was almost zero for two months.After Wednesdays entire tennis schedule was washed out because of rain, giving Nadal and everyone else a chance to rest, he resumed his pursuit of some hardware by beating 15th-seeded Gilles Simon of France 7-6 (5), 6-3 in singles. That match lasted 2 hours, 2 minutes in the main stadium, and was contested in shifting wind that made it tricky to calibrate shots and repeatedly knocked over courtside signage.In the end, hes still the same, Simon said. He never had three, four bad points in a row.Nadals next opponent will get plenty of home crowd support: Thomaz Bellucci of Brazil, who advanced by eliminating David Goffin of Belgium 7-6 (10), 6-4.The other mens quarterfinals: Andy Murray of Britain vs. Steve Johnson of the United States; Kei Nishikori of Japan vs. Gael Monfils of France; and Robert Bautista Agut of Spain vs. Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina.The womens semifinals are Angelique Kerber of Germany against Madison Keys of the U.S., and Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic against Monica Puigg of Puerto Rico.ddddddddddddThe winners will meet for gold; the losers will meet for bronze.Its obviously a little bit different playing for an Olympic medal, versus a Grand Slam, said Keys, an Australian Open semifinalist in 2015. But theyre both big stages. Theyre both big moments.A little past 3:30 p.m., Nadal was at Court 3 alongside his good friend Marc Lopez for doubles, and after playing for a minute more than 2 hours, they were lying on top of each other at the baseline, celebrating a 7-6 (1), 7-6 (4) victory over Daniel Nestor and Vasek Pospisil of Canada.When Nadal sat on the sideline bench, he planted a kiss atop Lopezs head. Then Nadal appeared to begin crying, and Lopez threw an arm around his shoulders.High emotions on court, Nadal said, and a lot of nerves.They will wind up with either gold or silver, depending on the outcome of their final against Florin Mergea and Horia Tecau of Romania.Nadal is trying to become the first player to win gold in singles twice. Also attempting to achieve that: Murray, the defending Olympic champion.For a stretch of Thursdays 6-1, 2-6, 6-3 win against the combustible Fabio Fognini of Italy, though, Murray appeared to be headed out of the tournament.The two-time Wimbledon champion dropped eight consecutive games to lose the second set and trail 3-0 in the third.Sometimes your opponent can be playing great. Sometimes youre playing terrible. Sometimes the conditions dont allow for you to play really well, and the conditions didnt allow that today, Murray said. Shadow on the court was making it very hard to pick up the ball and the wind was swirling everywhere.The 40th-ranked Fognini, who recently married 2015 U.S. Open champion Flavia Pennetta, acknowledged he got distracted by what he thought was a bad line call while one point from leading 4-1 in the final set.I was playing better than him for 1+ sets, Fognini said. And then, unfortunately, there was that call.Later, Murray suddenly found himself doing double duty, entering the mixed doubles field with Heather Watson and playing Thursday night after a late withdrawal by another team. Murray and Watson reached the second round, beating Carla Suarez Navarro and David Ferrer 6-3, 6-3.---Follow Howard Fendrich on Twitter at http://twitter.com/HowardFendrich ' ' '