In today's NBA, the regular season has started to lose a lot of its luster. Between the grueling 82-contest campaign and the downplaying of non-playoff achievements and success, an individual regular-season game has been wildly trivialized over the past few years. That rings especially true for a tanking team like the New Orleans Pelicans, who are actively trying to lose as much as possible for the remainder of the year.
It's arguably the league's most pressing issue. One might think that the NBA's middling television viewership might be its biggest problem, but that's simply a consequence of the fans not properly appreciating the regular season and its day-to-day games. Every now and then, though, the league stumbles upon a truly special matchup, one that truly grips the attention of the world. This season, the Los Angeles Lakers and Luka Doncic's first game against his former Dallas Mavericks was one of those nights. Doncic's revenge ended up drawing 2.5 million viewers for TNT, a testament to its draw.
Sometimes, the NBA can luck into a regular-season game that ends up holding grave importance, too. In 2018, before the introduction of the league's Play-In Tournament, the Minnesota Timberwolves and Denver Nuggets went head-to-head in a de facto elimination game for both teams' last outing of the regular season. Both teams came into the night tied at 46-35; the winner got the eighth seed and a playoff berth, and the loser got an early vacation. Jimmy Butler lifted the Wolves to a thrilling overtime victory over a 23-year-old Nikola Jokic, and the NBA got an early look at how enticing the Play-In Tournament would be.
The Pelicans HAVE to lose their game against the Charlotte Hornets
Believe it or not, the Pelicans are about to play one of the most important regular-season games in recent memory. It'll definitely be one of the most consequential outings of this year, at least. In fact, it'll certainly be more meaningful than that 2018 clash between the Wolves and the Nuggets, albeit in a completely different way. When they take on the Charlotte Hornets on March 30, the results of the game could have lasting ramifications that will drastically impact the league for years to come.
Coming into the contest, the Pelicans are 20-54, good for 14th in the Western Conference and 27th in the league. It also puts them just 1.5 games ahead of the 28th-place Hornets. Finishing with the third-worst record in the NBA versus the fourth-worst gives a team significantly better chances at landing a top-tier draft pick in the lottery. The 28th team has a 66.9 percent chance to come away with a top-five pick, but 27th-place only has 55.3 percent odds.
That could mean the difference between Dwyane Wade and Chris Kaman, Vince Carter and Robert Traylor, Trae Young and Mo Bamba... It's safe to say that the Pelicans could drastically change their fortunes if they can somehow lose this game to the Hornets.