in five career starts against

Alvin Gentry’s ability to coach the Pelicans into the second round of the playoffs despite the mid-season loss of All-Star DeMarcus Cousins persuaded the club that Gentry deserved to be under contract beyond next season.
Gentry agreed on Thursday to an extension covering two additional years www.redskinsauthorizedshops.com/authentic-derrius-guice-jersey , running through the 2020-21 season.
”He did a tremendous job last season,” Pelicans general manager Dell Demps said. ”When we faced adversity, Alvin and his staff continually discovered ways to place the team in situations where we could be successful.”
Gentry has gone 117-138 in three seasons, including this season’s playoffs, when the Pelicans swept Portland before losing a second-round series 4-1 to defending champion Golden State.
New Orleans missed the playoffs in Gentry’s first two seasons, during which the team dealt with a rash of injuries to key players.
During this past season, Gentry had to help the Pelicans adapt to the loss of Cousins John Franklin-Myers Color Rush Jersey , who played a central role in a system that revolved around him and fellow All-Star big man Anthony Davis. Cousins tore his left Achilles in the 48th game of the season. Without him, New Orleans still managed to go 21-13 and finish sixth in the highly competitive Western Conference.
The Pelicans’ late-season success stemmed in part from Gentry’s integration of Nikola Mirotic into the starting rotation after a Feb. 1 trade that brought the fourth-year forward to New Orleans from Chicago.
The vote of confidence in Gentry comes as the Pelicans ponder their approach to retaining two key free agents: Cousins and veteran point guard Rajon Rondo.
Both players thrived last season under Gentry, and Rondo during the playoffs spoke highly of the way Gentry respects his players by giving them the latitude to play to their strengths and be who they are.
Cousins was averaging 25.2 points and 12.9 rebounds before his injury. Rondo enjoyed his best production with New Orleans during the playoffs, when he averaged 10.3 points, 12.2 assists and 7.6 rebounds.
Gentry sounded confident that the Pelicans were prepared to move aggressively to build on what they accomplished this season, even if the price is high.
Ownership and management ”have provided us with the necessary resources to compete at the highest level,” Gentry said Thursday www.lionsauthorizedshops.com/authentic-sylvester-williams-jersey , specifically mentioning Gayle Benson, who is now the sole owner of the Pelicans and NFL’s Saints following the death of her husband, Tom, in March. ”I couldn’t be happier to work for such an exceptional owner. I am excited for the great opportunities that are ahead for our organization.”
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The Chicago White Sox have a chance to complete their first three-game sweep of the season when they face the Minnesota Twins in the series finale Thursday afternoon at Guaranteed Rate Field.
Chicago (28-51) is coming off back-to-back wins by margins of 8-4 and 6-1 over the Twins in the series’ first two games. The White Sox have won three straight, including a 10-3 decision over the Oakland Athletics on Sunday afternoon.
A win Thursday would give the White Sox their longest win streak of the season.
Minnesota (34-42) is hoping to salvage a win in the series and turn around a tough week for the club. The Twins have dropped two in a row and five of their past six to fall eight games below .500, which is tied with their low-water mark for the season.
White Sox right-hander Lucas Giolito (5-7, 7.01 ERA) will try to build upon his recent improvement in his 16th start of the season. The highly touted 23-year-old has struggled badly with command this year Authentic Blake McLaughlin Jersey , but has 14 strikeouts and only four walks in his past two outings.
Giolito is 1-2 with a 4.42 ERA in three career starts against Minnesota. Two of those starts took place this season, with the 6-foot-6, 245-pounder posting a 1-1 record with a 3.65 ERA.
Lately, Giolito has found success by not thinking so much about his pitching mechanics.
“It’s been kind of a long road to figure that out,” Giolito said to his team’s official website. “But I’m definitely in a much better place right now with that, just letting it flow. The key words are let it flow. Just go out there and be athletic. …
“It’s like the desire to be as good as I can be to the point where I’ve overanalyzed things and been like, ‘What am I doing wrong? What should I fix? What can I fix?’
“I’m doing that instead of being like Youth Baker Mayfield Jersey , ‘Hey, I’m here, I’m going to compete and let it all happen and just be athletic and let what I’ve been doing for years take over.'”
The Twins will counter with right-hander Jake Odorizzi (3-5, 4.97 ERA) for his 17th start of the season. The Illinois native has 80 strikeouts in 79 2/3 innings this season, but his walk rate (4.1 per nine innings) is the highest since his rookie campaign in 2012 with the Kansas City Royals.
Odorizzi is 1-2 with a 4.13 ERA in five career starts against the White Sox. He has an 0-1 record with a 5.23 ERA (six earned runs in 10 1/3 innings) in two starts against Chicago this season.
Avisail Garcia has homered in back-to-back games for the White Sox and could pose a challenge for Odorizzi, who has given up 14 long balls this year. Jose Abreu also is coming off a much better day at the plate in which he slammed his 12th home run and showed signs of breaking out of a slump.
For the Twins, Ehire Adrianza carries a hot bat into the series finale. He went 4-for-4 with a double and an RBI on Wednesday night www.buccaneersauthorizedshops.com/authentic-ryan-jensen-jersey , elevating his season average to .264 with four homers and 17 RBIs.
Chicago is 16-26 at home; Minnesota is 14-22 on the road.
After the game, the Twins will stay in Chicago and head about 8 miles north to take on the Cubs in a weekend series. Minnesota is 6-6 in interleague action compared with a 28-36 record against AL teams.
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