She’s got a team in the second round of the NBA playoffs and a horse in the Kentucky Derby. It’s a good thing that Gayle Benson doesn’t need a lot of sleep.

She’s just returned from watching her New Orleans Pelicans go down 0-2 to the Golden State Warriors, traveling between San Francisco and Oakland as she attended team practices. On Friday, she’ll be home in Louisiana to watch the Pelicans try to get back in the series.

Early Saturday morning, she’ll fly to Louisville to watch her long shot Lone Sailor run in the Kentucky Derby. Win or lose, on Sunday morning, it’s back to New Orleans for Game 4.

So on Thursday morning, apparently given to understatement, she said, “I have a lot of energy.”

Since the death of her husband, Tom, in March, Benson has found herself in the role that her husband began preparing her for when they were married in 2014. The owner of the Pelicans since 2012 (when the team was called the Hornets) and of the New Orleans Saints for more than 30 years, Benson involved his wife in his business endeavors — including his race horses — from the start.

Lone Sailor and James Graham at Fair Grounds. Photo: Amanda Hodges

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