New Orleans Pelicans: Game grades for loss to Atlanta Hawks
By Rick Stone
This was suppose to be a game the New Orleans Pelicans could feast on against an Eastern Conference opponent after a tough stretch of games vs. the West’s elite.
The feast ended up being a famine.
The Pelicans’ late fourth quarter run fell on the road to the Atlanta Hawks 100-91. The Pelicans struggled to get any offensive flow early, shooting a miserable 29.7% from the field in the first half. After being down 11 in the third quarter, the Pelicans made a run late, trying to cut into the lead, yet the Hawks had an answer every time, holding off New Orleans to seal the victory. Jrue Holiday lead the team in scoring with 20 points along with 4 rebounds and 7 assists. Anthony Davis had a tame stat line, scoring 14 points to add on to 11 rebounds.
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The Pelicans continue to struggle in this rough patch of their schedule, now losing three of their past four games, with a tough test tomorrow against the Washington Wizards, who are 9-5 to start the season.
While this was only the 14th game of the season for the New Orleans Pelicans, an uncomfortable pattern is starting to occur for this young team…
Other Observations:
- The Pelicans tried to live from the three-point line tonight, and it did not work. The Pelicans shot 7-24 from behind the arc, only 29.2% on long balls. That just won’t cut it.
- The long balls are even more frustrating when the points in the paint stat comes up. The Pelicans scored 52 of their 91 points in the paint. For a team that has a strong inside game, they don’t go to it enough.
- The Hawks balance on offense turned out to be the difference maker. All five Hawks starters ended up in double digits, along with bench PG Dennis Schroder.
- The Pelicans offense didn’t get any traction until the fourth quarter. The Pelicans scored 40 out of their 91 points in the final frame. However, they gave up a whopping 38 points in the 4th themselves. Their 4th quarter defense continues to be a weak point on this team.
- There are a lot of issues with this team that are becoming more visible with the injury to Eric Gordon. Monty Williams has a lot to fix, with another tough game just around the corner against the Washington Wizards.