New Orleans Pelicans: Grades for 113-99 win over the Toronto Raptors
New Orleans Pelicans vs. Toronto Raptors: Player Grades for the shooting guards
Shooting Guards
A-. . Shooting Guard. New Orleans Pelicans. ERIC BLEDSOE
Eric Bledsoe was low key the hero of this game. The Pelicans were struggling to get a bucket in the first half and their offense was in disarray. It looked like the Raptors were seconds away from blowing the game open.
But Bledsoe hit two 3-pointers that stopped the bleeding and kept the Pels in it when their offense was not clicking in the first half.
He also played pesky defense all night, with a block and a steal. He ended the game with 18 points and six assists, letting the game come to him.
The only reason this isn’t an “A” is that Bledsoe also committed four turnovers.
But it was still a great first game for Bledsoe with his new team.
Shooting Guard. New Orleans Pelicans. JJ REDICK. A+.
Is there a grade higher than A+? If so, Redick would get it, as he was absolutely amazing off the bench.
The Pels tried to force the ball into the paint in the early going, which wasn’t working because Toronto was just packing the paint and daring the Pels to shoot 3-pointers.
SVG made the adjustment to bring in Redick and things started to change. His shooting opened up space for Brandon Ingram to do his thing later in the game and was really the thing that changed the momentum.
Redick finished with 23 points on a scorching 6-of-11 from 3-point range. He also brought hustle and defensive intensity that clearly motivated the young Pels.
Redick is one of the leaders of this team and he showed it last night.
B. . Shooting Guard. New Orleans Pelicans. JOSH HART
Hart didn’t put up huge numbers or shoot the ball particularly well, but he was still a big part of the win.
Hart had just six points and five rebounds, going one for four from behind the arc. He also had a couple of careless turnovers, including an out-of-control fastbreak where he picked up an offensive foul instead of kicking it to the open shooter.
But Hart was on the floor at the end of the game because he played tough defense and hustled all night.
Hart finished with two steals but was chasing down loose balls and diving on the floor, which SVG noticed because he was in the game down the stretch.
Hart’s contributions don’t always show up in the stats, but he played very well.