When things don’t go according to plan for NBA teams, changes are necessary. That often results in players getting traded left and right. Even members of the coaching staff are part of this change when they get hired or fired amidst a hectic job market.
Nowadays, it is common to see NBA personnel caught in that awkward situation of facing their former team. It should come as no surprise that we saw many of these scenarios play out during the NBA Play-In Tournament.
Los Angeles Lakers vs. New Orleans Pelicans
In this play-in game, six players were involved in awkward moments: three from the Lakers and another three from New Orleans. Anthony Davis, Christian Wood, and Jaxson Hayes were once members of the Pelicans. On the other side, we saw former Lakers in Brandon Ingram, Larry Nance Jr., and Matt Ryan. The Lakers won the game, but the Pelicans somehow survived, too, and clinched the West’s last spot.
Golden State Warriors vs. Sacramento Kings
It was probably satisfying for Harrison Barnes and JaVale McGee to eliminate the struggling Warriors from the postseason. Both players got rings when they suited up for Golden State before, so maybe a little bit of guilt was felt after they won. Barnes got a ring back in 2015 while McGee won twice in back-to-back fashion a few years later.
You can also add coach Mike Brown and assistant coach Leandro Barbosa to the mix since both of these guys used to be a part of Golden State’s coaching staff. Their celebration had to be short-lived, though, as they were eliminated by the Pelicans a few days later. In the end, that injury to Malik Monk was a huge loss for the Kings.
Miami Heat vs. Philadelphia 76ers
Jimmy Butler, Josh Richardson, and Haywood Highsmith failed in their attempt to beat their former Sixers team. However, one player was happy with this result and he goes by the name of Kyle Lowry. Lowry recently played for the Heat before joining the Sixers midseason, so he ended up on the winning side of this one. Talk about luck.
Other Moments
Miami’s Butler and Chicago’s assistant coach, Maurice Cheeks, had no choice but to root against their old teams. In the Hawks-Bulls matchup, Cheeks had to coach against his former Hawks team. A few days later, an injured Butler ended up smiling a little bit when he found out that his team had eliminated his former Bulls squad.
