re: Demps Presser on Evaluating the Season

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Demps said it was not fair to try to assess Pelicans Coach Monty Williams based on the extreme short-handed nature of the team’s roster for nearly the entire season. Although the Pelicans are disappointed with the bottom-line outcome of this season, injuries were an overwhelming factor.

“I think it’s tough with all of the injuries,” said Demps, who arrived in New Orleans during the same ’10 offseason as Williams. “It’s unfair to give a true assessment (of Williams). With the pieces that he’s had and the way they’ve developed, I think that’s a definite positive. We’ve had a number of players improve. Obviously we want to get all of those improvements on the court at the same time. I think he was put in an impossible situation, with the injuries we’ve had. I thought the way our guys competed, I am happy with that. Every game we came into, I thought our team was prepared, played hard and gave maximum effort. I think we have established a culture of a blue-collar mentality, and I think Monty definitely gets the credit for that.”

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