After back to back losses to playoff potential teams, the New Orleans Pelicans look to salvage the back half of their road trip.
The New Orleans Pelicans dropped their second in the row in the midst of a five game road trip. Both losses were hard-fought battles as the team showed grit and determination in both games. Unfortunately, grit doesn’t factor into wins and losses.
Their next crack at a win comes tonight when they battle the Portland TrailBlazers, a team they swept in the first round of the playoffs last season. I’m sure Portland would like nothing more than to somewhat avenge a disappointing end to their season last year.
Injuries will be a concern for the Pelicans moving forward. Starting point guard Elfrid Payton has missed the past two contests dealing with a sprained right ankle. His prognosis is trending in the right direction as the team is hopeful that he can rejoin them sometime during this trip.
His presence has definitely been missed. Though the Pelicans rank second in the NBA in assists per game behind the Golden State Warriors, the Pelicans have had problems during stretches of the last two ball games. This is especially true when Jrue Holiday goes to the bench.
While Tim Frazier did an admirable job against the Warriors in his start, Payton’s explosiveness to the goal and finishing ability could not be duplicated by the other guards in his place. Frank Jackson was the first Pelican off the bench, but at times he looked tentative handling the ball and got lost on a couple of defensive assignments while trying to guard Stephen Curry.
The sooner Payton can return the better for the Pelicans. He isn’t the only one nursing an injury however.
Anthony Davis returned to action after missing the past two with a right elbow sprain. He seemed to be bothered by either the injury or the protective sleeve worn. He ended up ditching the sleeve in the second half, but still wasn’t up to his MVP level status. It will be interesting to see how he shakes back or if the team takes a more precautionary handle on his situation.
The Pels will play the next three road games in 5 days, all against teams who made the playoffs last season in the unforgiving Western Conference. Nobody envisioned the Pelicans going undefeated during this trip, but nobody saw them going winless either.
They can still finish strong provided the injury bug goes away and the probable return of Payton will help that cause. AD needs to perform back at his MVP level and the team needs to approach the rest of the trip with a sense of urgency.
If they can do that, it will go a long way in announcing the New Orleans Pelicans being here for the long haul.