Only the New Orleans Pelicans can trail for basically an entire game and then almost take it to overtime with a barrage of late fourth quarter threes.
Regardless, that late energy from the Pelicans was to no avail, as the team’s hopes of making the play-in tournament were further dimmed after a nail-biting but inevitable 112-114 loss to the Denver Nuggets on the road.
Stan Van Gundy’s team was fighting from behind the entire game. It was a game of runs, but none of them ever really put the Pelicans in the driver’s seat. Instead, New Orleans trailed at the end of every quarter and, by the time they made it close, it was a classic case of too little, too late.
The end of Wednesday night’s game was exhilarating and exemplified the sheer fun that NBA basketball can be. Late threes from Lonzo Ball, Eric Bledsoe, and Brandon Ingram dragged the Pelicans back into a game that looked finished. Then, with the Pels only two points down, a turnover from Nikola Jokic gave New Orleans a great chance to take the contest to overtime.
However, the Pelicans didn’t really get to be the masters of their own destiny. A great pass from Ingram found an open Zion Williamson under the rim. New Orleans’ all-star was “blocked” by Jokic to ice the game but, in truth, it was likely a foul call. Yet another one that Williamson does not get rewarded with because of his utter physicality.
The uncalled foul was undoubtedly a tough break, but it’s ultimately the byproduct of a wake-up call that came too late. Had the Pels played with the intensity of their last few minutes for the entire contest, they wouldn’t have been in that position to begin with.
Here are the player grades for the Pels’ loss against the Nuggets, starting with my personal MVP:
New Orleans Pelicans vs. Denver Nuggets: Grading the best player
Lonzo Ball stuffed the stat sheet against the Nuggets and turned in a memorable performance.
The Pelicans point guard was everywhere in the aptly named Ball Arena in Denver. Ball led the Pelicans in minutes (36), rebounds (12), assists (12), blocks (two), and steals (four). He also pitched in with 16 points, shooting 44 percent from three.
This was a thoroughly complete outing by the oft-questioned Ball that resulted in his first triple-double of the season. Some will inevitably point to his four turnovers, but that is a perfectly decent ratio considering the number of assists he got.
After being involved in everything good that was going for the Pelicans on offense, Ball was also really valuable on defense. He was in the passing lanes all night long, played with active hands, and was generally a nuisance on this end of the floor. It’s also worth mentioning that Ball defended the much larger Michael Porter Jr. for stretches of the game and did a perfectly acceptable job on him.
This is the second game in a row that Stan Van Gundy has trusted his team’s premier guard to be a defensive stopper on a bigger wing. First, it was Paul George against the Clippers—another good defensive showing—and now Porter. I am intrigued by the possibility of fleshing out Ball’s defensive versatility even more.
New Orleans Pelicans vs. Nuggets: Grades for the guards
Eric Bledsoe had a downright atrocious start to the game, but the New Orleans Pelicans guard turned it around big time.
Bledsoe’s first four minutes can be summed up with a huge sigh. He started with: an airball from three, a poor closeout that led to two points for the Nuggets, a missed corner three, a turnover on a drive after being called for the travel, a blocking foul, another defensive breakdown that led to a three-pointer, and an offensive foul for a moving screen.
That’s why it was also a big sigh, but this time of relief, when Bledsoe’s head didn’t drop and he proceeded to have a pretty good game.
Bledsoe ended up with 17 points and four assists. I enjoyed how he played with the intention to get downhill and wreak havoc from there. Bledsoe still has not lived up to expectations but he has undoubtedly been better since the trade deadline.
Putting in some more performances like this will hopefully see his trade cache rise again.
Kira Lewis Jr. struggled on both ends of the floor against Denver.
Lewis wasn’t overly bad offensively, but he also didn’t really contribute much besides one three-pointer. He had the chance to come into the game early because of Eric Bledsoe’s foul troubles and didn’t make the most of his chance. That’s fine for one night because he has definitely made the most of his rookie season so far.
It was on defense where Lewis truly suffered. He was unsure of how to guard Facundo Campazzo all night, who repeatedly got the upper hand on the Pels’ rookie. Campazzo is slower and less athletic than Lewis, but one thing you cannot underestimate is experience.
The Argentine guard’s craftiness and nous completely overwhelmed Lewis. This would have been a great game to have Nickeil Alexander-Walker available.
New Orleans Pelicans vs. Nuggets: Grades for the wings
I’m running the risk of having Brandon Ingram graded a bit too high, but I thought he was one of the most dangerous players for the New Orleans Pelicans all night long.
In terms of purely shooting, Ingram played a perfectly normal game for his lofty standards. He had 27 points on 50 percent shooting and ended up with four made threes, including a huge one in the clutch. Ingram also showed some flashes of pretty good playmaking and should have gotten an assist to take the game to overtime.
However, notice how I said flashes. That’s because Ingram was really inconsistent making decisions against the Nuggets. When he was looking to get his passes off quickly, Ingram was executing the right reads and setting up his teammates for great looks. But when the one-time all-star was more intent on pounding the ball or forcing things, he hurt the Pelicans.
Ingram ended up with a team-high six turnovers—one more than his five assists. He needs to find a balance between looking for his own shot and being more snappy with his facilitating.
Still, the Pels’ chances of taking the game to overtime and then possibly winning went through Ingram a lot down the stretch. That’s why he still gets a good grade.
Naji Marshall saw his minutes go down a bit against the Nuggets, although I think it was just a case of the guards and wings generally playing quite well.
The former Xavier standout finished with seven points in 18 minutes, while also adding a pair of assists and five rebounds. However, he had a season-high three turnovers.
More importantly, Marshall made both of his attempted free throws. He had not converted all of his foul shots since April 18 and this will be a key improvement area for him going forward.
I’m also excited to see what new signing Didi Louzada can add to the Pels’ wing positions. That will hopefully mean some healthy competition for Marshall since he is the only truly dependable rotation wing that is healthy and fit to play right now.
Wenyen Gabriel stayed in Stan Van Gundy’s rotation against Denver, likely because of James Johnson’s minutes restriction.
The South Sudan forward seemingly came on to both fill time and give the Pelicans a jolt of energy. He did well in that regard since Gabriel always comes on the floor with a ton of defensive intensity and energy. Besides that, though, he honestly barely did anything.
I mentioned against the Clippers that Gabriel’s negative offensive feel is the biggest thing holding him back from having a consistent NBA role. He has the size, athleticism, energy, and versatility to be an NBA player but is often a complete non-factor on attack. That goes back to his college days at Kentucky, as well.
Against the Nuggets, Gabriel whiffed an open layup after attacking a closeout and then smacked the floor in frustration. I hope this part of his game eventually comes around.
It’s good to see James Johnson back but he won’t be getting a grade because he was on a minutes restriction.
The veteran forward played a hair less than eight minutes for the Pels. I’m not sure if he was only available for that amount of time, but it seemed rather arbitrary and even sort of detrimental. Johnson has averaged 26 minutes per game for the Pelicans so far and he was understandably unable to get into any sort of groove against the Nuggets.
However, seeing him return will be a boost for New Orleans as they face the end of the regular season. Let’s see if Johnson sticks around in the big easy this summer.
New Orleans Pelicans vs. Nuggets: Grades for the bigs
A slightly subpar outing for Zion Williamson, although he still could have taken the New Orleans Pelicans to overtime.
Williamson looked like he struggled to get into a rhythm all night, although he still gave the Nuggets problems. The Pels’ franchise player showed how unstoppable he could be in the low post, but some credit must be given to Denver.
The Nuggets made things difficult for Williamson all night. He still got 21 points, but he was held to under 50 percent shooting from the field. That has only happened seven times all season.
I expect Williamson to be back at his best against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday.
Willy Hernangómez saw plenty of action once again and did relatively okay.
B- seems like a low grade given what I just said, but it’s just what happens when you face Nikola Jokic. The Nuggets center is a surefire MVP candidate in what some say should be a no-contest and what others believe is a two-horse race between Jokic and the Sixers’ Joel Embiid.
Regardless, it cannot be overstated just how unstoppable Jokic has been this season. He is nearly perfect in every area, so it would have been foolish to pretend that Hernangómez had a chance of stopping him. The Spanish big made his Serbian counterpart work hard at times, but it was still just too easy.
However, Hernangómez competed well, played tough, and did alright on offense. Sometimes, you’re just going to face players that are better than you. Not much you can do about that.
Jaxson Hayes needs to be played exclusively at the 5.
Okay, maybe seeing some time at the 4 will help round out his skills and whatnot, but I honestly think that is identically possible if he plays solely at the center spot. Hayes only saw minutes at the 4 for a brief period of time against the Nuggets, but seeing that frontcourt option still exasperates me.
Maybe Hayes isn’t strong enough to defend Jokic yet, but the Pelicans are four games off the play-in tournament. You don’t exactly want to throw in the towel, but you can still use this time to develop young prospects—such as the Texas big.
Theoretically, Hayes at the 4 gives you size, lets him stretch the floor a bit more, and hopefully helps him get used to other areas besides the paint. However, putting him in as a center with Zion Williamson doing damage in the paint accomplishes the exact same thing. If Hayes can become a decent three-point shooter, then he’ll only become a bigger mismatch for centers who will need to find a balance between guarding him on the outside and being aware of the danger he poses above the rim.
Against the Nuggets, Hayes did well during his 14 minutes of game time. He was perfect from the field, made his four free throws, and showed off his good hands.
Steven Adams was questionable heading into the game and then didn’t play at all after the half.
The New Zealand center has been dealing with a toe injury that he apparently reaggravated against the Nuggets. Prior to checking out of the game for good, he played only 13 minutes.
Stan Van Gundy would have probably preferred for Adams to play against Denver and then miss the game against Oklahoma City, but of course, it’s not like one can choose that. Still, Adams maybe would have given Jokic some more problems with his physicality or just made him work harder. It’s not like he stopped the Serbian big man in their prior encounters.