New Orleans Pelicans 23-24

Pelicans 117, Clippers 106

Maybe the best win of the year, Pels go on the road and knock the Clips off the #1 seed mantle in the West. Wire-to-wire win, sparked early by Trey Murphy (3 3's in the first quarter, finished with 13 points), strong defense in the middle (Daniels and Nance with 4 steals each, forced 19 TO's as a team) and CJ and Zion going off late. McCollum finished with 25, Zion with 21 and 10 assists. Only negative was Jonas Valenciunas suffering a leg bruise late in the 2nd and not returning. Pels now tied with Phoenix for 5th in the West. Back-to-back next, staying in LA for the Lakers Friday and then at Portland Saturday. We'll see if the roster looks the same, Twittr was buzzing last night with talk of a trade with Atlanta today for Dejounte Murray, but NBA insider Chris Haynes just tweeted that those talks have fallen apart. Trade deadline is 2:00

 

Trade deadline comes and goes, Pelicans stand pat. What I'm reading indicates Atlanta wanted Herb Jones as part of a deal for DeJounte Murray, and the Pels weren't giving him up. I'm 100% in agreement.

 

Pels go 3-1 on the Mardi Gras road trip, finishing up last night with a win at Memphis where they almost blew (yet again where Memphis is concerned) a 20+ point 3rd quarter lead. This whole team just has no clue how to handle really tough defensive pressure. No one moves, no one sets screens, and BI and Zion, in particular, are constantly trying to dribble out of double teams and end up turning the ball over. Pels are well-positioned for a run at a high seed now (alone in 5th, 4 games out of 3rd) with a favorable schedule for the rest of the month. They need to figure the offensive issues out in a hurry, though. Dyson Daniels is out indefinitely with a torn meniscus but Matt Ryan is available again.

 

Pelicans 133, Wizards 126

Pels have won 3 straight, but all 3 wins are concerning. Much closer than any should have been. In this case, starters blew a 20-point lead built up by the second unit in the second quarter, and actually trailed by 6 in the second half before the second unit came in again and bailed them out. To their credit, Wizards shot lights out from deep (21 3's, Deni Avdija hit a career-high 41 points) and the Pels didn't (10 of 32). To his credit, Coach Willie Green countered with a small lineup of Alvarado, Jones, Marshall, Murphy and Zion playing 5-spot, and that unit overwhelmed Washington with tempo and defense. Williamson tied his season-high of 36 points, along with 8 assists and 6 boards, but the props go to Alvarado, Murphy and Marshall, who were all 17 or better in the +/- stat. At 33-22 for the all-star break, best record at the break since 2009. Tied for 5th in the West, 3 games out of 4th, 5.5 out of first, but the starters as a unit really need to do some soul-searching during the break and realize they need to give their best effort every night.

 

NBA should rename the All Star Game to reflect its true purpose. I suggest the NBA All Star Showboating Shootaround.

 

Pelicans 127, Rockets 105

Pels withstand an early 3-point barrage from the visitors, then put them away in the 2nd and 3 quarters with outstanding defense and transition offense. Fourth win in a row and the Pels are now alone in 5th place (1 game cushion), 5 and a half games out of first and 2.5 behind Denver for 4th. Brandon Ingram sat (non-covid illness) but they got 28 points from McCollum, 27 and 9 assists from Zion, 20 with 14 boards from Valanciunas, and a brilliant all-around effort from Herb Jones, who had 17 points, 7 steals and 5 rebounds. Only disappointment was Trey Murphy, who got the start for BI and couldn't hit water from a boat, 2 of 10 behind the arc and 3 of 6 FTs. Did play well on defense though. Tough one tonight as Miami comes to town, then Chicago Sunday night.

 

Pelicans knocked off Sacramento last night for the 5th time this season. They've clinched no worse than the 7th seed with 2 games left, and if they win both (at Golden State tomorrow, vs the Lakers Sunday) they get the 6th seed. Ingram has been out for nearly a month with a knee issue, but is expected to play Sunday. Should note that in the last two wins - tonight and in Portland Tuesday - CJ McCollum and Trey Murphy were a combined 25 of 46 on their 3's - CJ hit 9 of 12 tonight. Zion has also been excellent down the stretch and is even beginning to go to a pull-up jumper in the 10-15 foot range. Getting very exciting!

 

Better matchup for the Pels with Zion obviously, but even with him it comes down to shooting. NO shot like shit in game one, history says they'll do better tonight but we shall see.