New Orleans Pelicans: Player Grades in 127-123 Loss to the Mavericks

Zion Williamson had a frustrating night. The Mavericks had a good plan for him, which was essentially to force him into defenders who were ready to block his shot.

Kleber and Porzingis got into the rookie’s head a bit with all of the blocked shots and Zion finally looked his age, as he got frustrated and could never really get going.

He did finish the game with 21 points on 9 of 18 shooting, but only got to the line five times and never got into an offensive rhythm.

He added a few of his thunderous dunks of course, and Zion never disappoints in that department.

It should be a learning experience for the teenage superstar and one he will think about until he gets a chance at revenge next season.

There is no reason to panic, but Zion did come up limping a few times and generally looked fatigued on the tail end of a back-to-back. This is something to watch as Williamson plays extended minutes down the stretch.

Brandon Ingram left everything on the court last night, but fouled out late in the game when the Pelicans needed him most.

Ingram is evolving into an offensive wizard with an array of tricks up his sleeve and the ability to score from anywhere on the floor.

His scoring, along with Ball’s 3-point barrage, kept the New Orleans Pelicans in the game.

Ingram finished the night with 27 points, four assists and five rebounds, but had to watch the end of the game from the bench.

Nicolo Melli was having a night to forget before tying the game with a 3-pointer whose degree of difficulty was about as high as you’ll ever see.

Unfortunately, that was the extent of Melli’s contributions, as he went 1 of 9 from the field including just 1 of 7 from 3-point range.

Melli, Hart and Moore went a combined 1 of 12 from 3-point range, which was the difference in a close game. The bench came up short on a night when the New Orleans Pelicans needed production.