New Orleans Pelicans: Scouting Southwest Division Rivals
By Cody Taylor
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – MARCH 24: Iman Shumpert #1 of the Houston Rockets dribbles the ball past Jahlil Okafor #8 of the New Orleans Pelicans during the second half at the Smoothie King Center on March 24, 2019, in New Orleans, Louisiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)
The Houston Rockets are the New Orleans Pelicans closest geographical rival.
The bragging right of Interstate 10 will be intense this season. Chris Paul might not play for the Rockets but Russell Westbrook is perhaps the most intense player in the league.
Pelicans 2018-19 Record Versus Rockets: 2-2
2019-20 Dates
Home: November 11th, December 29th
Away: October 26th, February 2nd
The New Orleans Pelicans do not late for Texas rivals. The Houston Rockets just happen to a few hours west on Interstate 10. The cities’ rappers can collaborate at will. The Pelicans hope to knock the Rockets off of their divisional throne.
This is probably the hard matchup to gauge before we see them take the court this season. Their biggest question mark is how much better are they with Russell Westbrook than they were with Chris Paul. When the Rockets made the original Chris Paul trade, the question was how well will he and James Harden work together and that question remains with Westbrook.
Yes, they were teammates in Oklahoma City with Kevin Durant that lost to LeBron and the Miami Heat in the 2012 NBA Finals but we have to see how Westbrook adjusts to not being the franchise icon and the number one option and how he takes the auxiliary role behind James Harden.
The Houston Rockets have had the New Orleans Pelicans’ number the last four seasons with an 11-5 record against the Pelicans. Now the Rockets are going to probably have to use the mentality of outscoring their opponents because they don’t have a lot of defensive talent on their roster.
There are questions surrounding how well their offense meshes. And also about how Mike D’antoni works with the pressure of not getting the big extension and his 2018-19 staff being fired. Considering how much the Western Conference reloaded, it’ll be a fun matchup to watch.
Season Prediction Versus Houston Rockets: 2-2