Perhaps it was the wake-up call the New Orleans Pelicans desperately needed.
When Houston Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. drained that game-winning pull-up 3-pointer with 0.4 seconds left on St. Patrick’s Day, it looked as if he not only buried the shot, but also the Pelicans’ season.
Many people wrote the Pelicans’ obituary that night, understandably so considering the Pels blew a double digit lead against one of the worst teams in the NBA to start off what was supposed to be a fairly easy 4-game stretch against three non-playoff teams: (Rockets twice, San Antonio Spurs and Hornets).
Jonas Valancuinas summed it up best that night in Houston.
“We s*** the bed,” the Pelicans’ center said.
Fast forward four games later and the Pelicans haven’t lost since.
They beat the Rockets two nights later, then came home and beat the Spurs and Hornets in games they were supposed to win. But it’s what they did Saturday night in Los Angeles that really turned a half-empty glass to half-full.
Before the team left New Orleans for this 4-game West Coast slate, Willie Green called it a “business trip.” Then they went out and took care of the first order of business, blasting the Clippers 131-110.
“We understand what’s at stake,” Willie Green said. “We’re working diligently. But we have a work-man like mentality. Come in. Keep chopping wood.”
Considering the stakes, it was their most impressive win of the season. You can make an argument that the season-opening 130-108 road win over Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and the Brooklyn Nets was better. But considering the sense of urgency and all that’s at stake now, it’s hard to put that one over this one. And besides, that game against the Nets had Zion. This one didn’t.
This one was a collective team effort, with Brandon Ingram and Trey Murphy going off for 32 points each. Murphy made 10 3-pointers, just one shy of the franchise record 11 CJ McCollum made in a game in December. The Pelicans made 21 of 34 3-pointers.
Leave a Reply