New Orleans Pelicans games that fans must watch in December

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PHILADELPHIA, PA – NOVEMBER 23: Josh Richardson #0 and Ben Simmons #25 of the Philadelphia 76ers in action against the Miami Heat at the Wells Fargo Center on November 23, 2019 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The 76ers defeated the Heat 113-86. 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 Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

Friday, December 13th, New Orleans Pelicans @ Philadelphia 76ers

In this Friday the 13th battle, the Pelicans stay on the road to face a monster-sized Philadelphia 76ers, another club many expect to be leading the pack in the Eastern Conference when the calendar turns to playoff season.

Currently standing 14-6, good enough for the fifth-seed in the East, the 76ers’ supersized team isn’t enjoying the perfect start they’d hoped after making moves for Josh Richardson and to retain Tobias Harris in the offseason.

However, this team still has one of the league’s finest tandems, perhaps the best under-25 duo in sports in Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid.

When the New Orleans Pelicans hit the road for this game, they’ll hope for a big night from Jrue Holiday, who spent the beginning of his career in Philadelphia, an All-Star in 2013 who was traded as the team began their infamous “Process” to lose tons of games to try and gain top picks.

Can Brandon Ingram prove himself the better pick than Ben Simmons from the 2016 NBA Draft?

One of the greatest debates before and after the 2016 NBA draft centered around which one of Ingram or Simmons would eventually develop into the better NBA player. The early returns showed clear results in favor of Simmons, but after a jaw-dropping performance in the opening months of this season, Ingram has changed that notion.

Lately, the New Orleans Pelicans’ forward looks like a real-deal scorer with an increasingly high ceiling while Simmons struggles to find any comfort in his jump shot.

In my mind, this game could be a big night for Brandon Ingram to prove his ascendence in the league, by knocking-off the player who went one pick ahead of him in 2016.

Both looking like multi-time All-Stars as Ingram is just 22 and Ben Simmons only being 23, but one looks more convincing as an overall player than the other; Ingram’s 2019-2020 could really be the nail in the coffin for this debate.

If he can go get a win over the 76ers in Philadelphia while outperforming Simmons, that’s the kind of night that gets recognized by the masses.

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