New Orleans Pelicans vs. Pistons: Player Grades for the small forwards
You know Brandon Ingram wanted to have a big night after getting snubbed for the All-Star game.
Ingram stayed humble and said all the right things when teammate Zion Williamson became the 4th youngest player to be selected to an All-Star game.
Ingram reminded folks around the league that he is pretty good too, dropping 27 points, seven rebounds and eights assists while only turning the ball over once.
I’ve often said that you can usually tell if the Pelicans won just by looking at Ingram’s assist to turnover ratio, as high turnovers for Ingram usually meant the Pels played isolation ball all night and didn’t have the ball movement that defines their offense when it’s humming.
On a night when the entire bench stunk once again, the Pels needed every bit of Ingram’s team-high 37 minutes to put the Pistons away.
This will be something to keep an eye on, as Ingram has often faded after the first quarter and has continued to play big minutes for the Pelicans.
His minutes will be key against the Bucks in the second game of the back-to-back and Stan Van Gundy will have to find ways to keep him fresh while not killing his mojo.