The New Orleans Pelicans are officially rolling.
After dispatching of the Suns and the flailing Lakers on the road, the Pels returned home to face a Sacramento Kings team that has given them trouble over the last few years.
It was a classic trap game, but New Orleans stayed focused and got the blowout win after the Kings never really came out of the locker room in the second half.
Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum were dynamic once again and the Pels got some surprising contributions from the bench in the form of 17 points from Naji Marshall.
New Orleans is now alone in the 10th spot in the Western Conference, just 1.5 games behind the Lakers for the 9th seed.
This was on top of some positive news about Zion Williamson’s foot, which is apparently healing, allowing him to begin to put weight on it. We’re a long way from a team that started the season 1-12, including a loss to the Kings.
Here are three takeaways from the Pelicans win over the Kings.
The New Orleans Pelicans’ defense
The Pelicans were one of the worst defensive teams in the NBA last season, a point of focus for new head coach Willie Green.
Green has pushed a defensive mentality, and the addition of all-world defender Herbert Jones has put New Orleans in the top half of the league in points allowed.
They are now 14th in points allowed overall and have let up just 97.3 per game over their last three, including last night when they gave up just 95 points to the high-scoring Kings.
Their points per game allowed has improved by six points this season, which is a huge turnaround for a team that was awful on defense last season.
Can my man Willie Green get some love for Coach of the Year?
Choose your poison: CJ McCollum or Brandon Ingram?
Even without Zion Williamson, the Pelicans have two of the most dynamic scorers in the NBA with CJ McCollum and Brandon Ingram.
The two are really starting to gel and play off each other, which was evident last night, especially in the second half.
After scoring 22 first-half points and looking virtually unstoppable in the mid-range, the Sacramento Kings started to double team Ingram in the second half.
This opened things up for McCollum, who was able to knock down a couple of open 3’s when his man left him to double BI in the post.
This is a weapon New Orleans can continue to use, as both guys can score from all over, and if you double one of them, the other is going to make you pay.
McCollum’s 3-point shot wasn’t falling most of the night, so he started to go to work distributing the ball, ending the game with nine assists.
The Kings had no answer for the Pels’ duo and it’s exciting to think about the possibilities of this team when they are finally at full strength.
Naji Marshall stepping up for the New Orleans Pelicans
Coach Green seems to be pressing all of the right buttons these days, which includes putting Naji Marshall back into the rotation.
The Pels’ starters have been great all season, but they needed someone on the bench to step up and so far it has been newcomer Tony Snell and forward Naji Marshall.
Marshall had one of his best games of the season last night and he looks like a different guy since being re-inserted in the rotation.
He is playing with more confidence, energy and is finally starting to knock down some shots, going 7-of-9 overall last night on his way to 17 points.
He was brining the ball up and initiating the offense, making hustle plays and even knocked down a couple of 3-point shots.
This is the Marshall we saw in Summer League and preseason and if he can keep this up, the Pels’ bench can be a weapon.
All is well in New Orleans right now and the Pelicans can’t wait to get back on the court tomorrow night against the Jazz.