New Orleans Pelicans: Player Grades in 122-114 Loss to Lakers

Shooting Guards

A lot has been made of Holiday’s defense (or attempted defense) on LeBron over their last two meetings. Holiday was clearly gassed from guarding the much bigger James in their last matchup, so coach Alvin Gentry gave him a reprieve and went with a more “defense by committee” approach.

It didn’t help.

Holiday finished the game with just 11 points on 4 of 10 shooting, adding six assists and five rebounds.

Holiday didn’t guard LeBron as much but it didn’t seem to matter, as he still struggled to get into a rhythm on the offensive end.

Hart is one of the players who needs to step up in Redick’s absence.

He started the game strong, grabbing boards and playing decent defense on LeBron. He was at least able to force James to settle for fadeaways at times and was clearly part of a revamped defensive strategy for Gentry.

He finished the night with only seven points, but did grab six rebounds, which was key against the larger Lakers who killed the Pelicans for 14 offensive rebounds in the last meeting.

Hart again shot just 1 of 3 from 3-point range and the Pelicans will need him to shoot more and better with Redick out with an injury.

E’Twaun Moore is another bench player who will need to step up in Redick’s absence. He played only 16 minutes but was able to notch five points, three rebounds and three assists, while hitting his only 3-point attempt.

Moore’s shooting and veteran leadership will be important down the stretch, as he is sure to see increased minutes and shots.