Pelicans put finishing touches on Lakers: 3 takeaways
CJ McCollum and the New Orleans Pelicans’ ceiling
Clearly trading for CJ McCollum changed the ceiling for what the Pelicans can be this season.
He and Brandon Ingram combined for 61 points last night, were smart with the basketball, played aggressively in transition and patiently in the half court and set up teammates when the double teams came.
These two can score with any duo in the NBA, and when you factor in the steady play of Jonas Valanciunas (who had two HUGE shots in the 4th quarter), as well as Herb Jones, this looks like a team that is ready to make some noise.
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If they can close strong and make the play-in tournament as the 9th seed, they will be two wins away from making the playoffs. The way they are playing right now, I wouldn’t bet against them, and I can guarantee that the Phoenix Suns are hoping someone other than New Orleans makes it to their first-round series.
We don’t want to get too far ahead of ourselves here, as the Pelicans still have a lot of work to do before we have to worry about a 1st-round playoff series, but they are playing as well as just about anyone in the league right now and are not a team anyone wants to face.