The New Orleans Pelicans’ chances of making the playoffs practically evaporated after a 129-134 loss to the Brooklyn Nets.
The Pels are now four games behind the 9th- and 10th-placed Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs, respectively, the mark they would need to qualify for the play-in tournament at the end of the regular season. Barring nothing short a miracle, the rest of the season looks like an extended audition at making the most out of developing the team’s young players and trying to get a high draft pick.
New Orleans got off to a hot start against the Nets, actually making threes and quickly growing into a lead; however, the Pels did not get the chance to settle into said lead at any moment. Stan Van Gundy’s team led by just two at the half and Brooklyn actually threatened to pull away in the third quarter.
By the time the game was over, the Pelicans had suffered their fourth consecutive loss. The Nets executed down the stretch—simple as that. When they were up three points, Brooklyn actually played the foul game and remembered to take the Pelicans to the free throw line. New Orleans didn’t even get a chance to toss up a final shot after an unlucky turnover by Zion Williamson with just seconds remaining.
Up next, the Pelicans face the Orlando Magic in a very winnable but perhaps rather inconsequential game.
Here are the player grades for the Pels’ loss against the Nets, starting with my personal MVP:
New Orleans Pelicans vs. Brooklyn Nets: Grading the best player
Zion Williamson led the way for the New Orleans Pelicans against the Nets, even if he didn’t get the chance to potentially take the game into overtime.
Williamson was dominant as always. He constantly got to his preferred left hand, typically imposed himself in the paint, and crashed the offensive glass to good success. The Pels’ all-star finished with 33 points on 74 percent shooting, seven rebounds, and four assists—only his four turnovers are improvable.
It was another great game for Williamson, but that is not a surprise at this point. Now, with the Pelicans likely out of the playoff picture, the rest of the season must be catered towards finding the right pieces around Williamson.
I am tired of seeing him put into negatively spaced lineups. At one point, Williamson was on the court with Kira Lewis Jr, Naji Marshall, Jaxson Hayes, and Willy Hernangómez. None of those players are dependable outside shooters and pairing them with Williamson severely constricts his skillset.
Williamson is skilled and athletic enough to carve out his own crevices, but this is not a sustainable formula for success. Even if Williamson has not played the equivalent to a full NBA season yet, the Pelicans front office does not have time to waste in pleasing their generational star.
New Orleans Pelicans vs. Nets: Grades for the guards
A better game for Lonzo Ball after two bad showings in a row.
Ball, who continues to work his way back from a hip injury, had a slow start but bounced into action after the break. The former UCLA guard had three points in the first half, but then went off for 12 points in the latter half of the game.
Ball did a lot to keep the Pelicans alive during a tough third quarter. When it seemed like New Orleans was faltering, it was Ball who sprung up with a really good few minutes of play.
During that stretch, he had: a great pass that led to a Steven Adams bucket, a three-pointer off the dribble, an aggressive full court take to the rim, a stepback two, and a pass that resulted in Naji Marshall shooting free throws.
It was good to see Ball have a good game after a catastrophic mistake in the Pels’ loss to the Knicks.
Eric Bledsoe has been in the spotlight over the last few days and he didn’t remedy the mistake he made against the Knicks with a strong performance versus the Nets.
Bledsoe was arguably the Pels’ worst player against Brooklyn. His shot was falling very early on, getting his night started with a couple of threes, but everything went downhill from there. After that, Bledsoe was ineffective on both ends of the floor. He wasn’t solid enough on defense and didn’t contribute on attack.
The Kentucky product did not feature at all in the fourth quarter, which is quite an indictment. His 17 minutes on the court are the least he has played all season.
Over his last 10 games, Bledsoe is shooting 36 percent from the field and 29 percent from three. Those numbers must improve, but the rest of the season tells us that Bledsoe is unlikely to get out of this slump—if it’s even that, at this point.
I suggested recently that Kira Lewis Jr. had possibly hit the rookie wall, but could still contribute to the Pelicans until the end of his rookie season.
That turned out to be true against the Nets, as Lewis had a really positive game. He made a trifecta of three-pointers, finished with 11 points, and dished out four assists. The Alabama draftee made a difference off the bench, pushing the tempo, getting his teammates involved, and just making poised decisions on the floor.
Lewis is a rookie, but doesn’t play like one. Of course, you can tell that it is his first season in the NBA, but he rarely gets sped up and is almost never sloppy.
This game was also good experience for Lewis. He got to be on the floor down the stretch of a close game against one of the best teams in the NBA (even if they were missing two of their three main players).
New Orleans Pelicans vs. Nets: Grades for the wings
Brandon Ingram couldn’t really do a whole lot more besides maybe making one more three-pointer. Still, he scored an efficient 27 points and got his teammates five assists.
Ingram was pivotal for the Pelicans with his scoring and playmaking. His pull-up jumper was really falling against the Nets and it’s a shame that we will most likely not get to see that skill in the playoffs this season.
I also thought the former Duke wing played well down the stretch. He scored eight points in the last period and didn’t quiver when the Nets put him at the free throw line.
Another good night for Naji Marshall, whose grade would have probably been an A if his shot had fallen.
Marshall was actually tasked with providing quite a bit of offensive punch against the Nets. His 15 total shot attempts were third on the team, just behind Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson. The former Xavier man was aggressive throughout his 35 minutes—a team-high—on the court.
The only thing that wasn’t going for Marshall was his shot. He got plenty of joy taking the ball to the rack, but Marshall was 2-of-8 from three (including two misses down the stretch) and 1-of-6 from the free throw line.
Marshall’s swing skill has always been his shot, so he will need to continue putting in the work when it comes to that. Still, he has quickly made himself an important part of Stan Van Gundy’s rotation.
Wes Iwundu was back in the rotation as a result of James Johnson’s absence.
The former Dallas Mavericks wing made the most out of his opportunity. In his 20 minutes, he played with great energy, competed on defense, and took his chances to score. However, Iwundu continues to be a complete non-factor from beyond the perimeter, missing both of his two-pointers.
Iwundu had an encouraging performance against the Nets and he deserves credit for staying ready whenever his number is called. Despite that, I’m unconvinced he has a long-term future in New Orleans.
New Orleans Pelicans vs. Nets: Grades for the bigs
Steven Adams was solid on offense and questionable defensively.
There isn’t much to write about Adams that we don’t know at this point. He will hustle on defense, crash the boards to gather up rebounds, and give you a few buckets per game. The rare thing is when he truly stands out, but this was not the case against the Nets.
Adams scored seven points, got five rebounds, and made two blocks. He missed a free throw intentionally with about 50 seconds left, which was a bit of a strange decision but I’m not sure ultimately impacts the result that much.
On defense, Adams had a tougher night. He was out of position at times defending the pick-and-roll, wasn’t quite sure how to defend Blake Griffin, and failed to have much of an impact in the clutch.
Willy Hernangómez got 18 minutes against the Nets and did okay.
Hernangómez continues to be impactful as a scoring big off the bench. He scored a useful seven points for the Pels, finishing down low and forcing himself to the free throw line using his physicality and size.
But on defense, the Spanish big continues to struggle. He wasn’t terrible against the Nets or anything, but it is evident that Hernangómez is not up to par when it comes to facing the best bigs in the league. If the Pels aren’t going to make the playoffs, then I would rather see his minutes go to Jaxson Hayes—even if that might produce fewer wins in the short-term.
Jaxson Hayes only played 10 minutes against the Nets.
Hayes wasn’t much of a factor in the New Orleans Pelicans’ loss to the Nets. He played as the 4 for most of his minutes, which I am adamant is not the best use of his abilities.
Because of his low minutes and usage, I don’t think he merits a grade. Hayes’ night will be remembered for being on the wrong end of a Jeff Green poster.