3 Games to Monitor for the New Orleans Pelicans Playoff Chase

Memphis Grizzlies at Dallas Mavericks, 8:30 PM ET

The Dallas Mavericks (38-25) won an overtime thriller against the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday night and now the Pels are hoping they can do the same to Memphis.

The Memphis Grizzlies (31-31) have won three in a row after dropping their previous five. It looked as though the Grizzlies were going to fade, but they got a big win against the Lakers that may have saved their season.

They are just 5-5 in their last ten, but the struggling Pelicans have not been able to gain ground. Memphis is not going to go away, so the Pelicans cannot count on them going on another extended losing streak, though they do have one of the toughest remaining schedules in the NBA.

The Dallas Mavericks are playing well behind their superstar duo of Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis, who torched the New Orleans Pelicans in the last game for a combined 64 points. Memphis will have to slow these two if they want to have a chance tonight.

The Grizzlies are just 14-17 on the road but Dallas is just 17-14 at home, hardly a dominant home court advantage.

This will still be a chance for the New Orleans Pelicans to gain ground tonight, and hopefully Dallas will help after ripping the hearts out of the Pelicans on Wednesday.

The New Orleans Pelicans find themselves in a bad position. They not only need to win their games but will need help. With just 20 games remaining, they have only a 45 percent chance of making the playoffs according to Five Thirty Eight, a nearly 20 percent decrease from earlier in the week.

It is not over for the Pelicans and these three games may prove to be crucial in their hunt for the playoffs.