The New Orleans Pelicans will host the Charlotte Hornets on Sunday, March 30, in one of the most important games of the 2024-25 NBA regular season. That's not a mistake or a typo. Both of these teams have been mathematically eliminated from the postseason — two of six squads at the time of writing — and yet, this matchup could have major ramifications across the league for years down the line.
The Pelicans will come into the game at 20-54, which is good for 14th in the Western Conference and 27th overall in the NBA. That marks has them three full games below the Philadelphia 76ers — who just tacked on another crucial loss against the Miami Heat — and just 1.5 games ahead of the Charlotte Hornets.
The loser of this head-to-head clash will have a great chance to secure the 28th seed to finish the season. Anyone who thinks there's not a significant difference between the 28th and 27th teams in terms of lottery odds would be wrong. Winding up with the third-worst record instead of the fourth-worst would give the Pelicans a 1.5 percent better chance to land the number-one pick and Cooper Flagg and an 11.6-point swing at staying in the top five for a chance at someone like Duke's Khaman Maluach or Baylor's VJ Edgecombe. It's clear how important this tank-off between New Orleans and Charlotte is, and that's exactly why the lineups we'll see in this game will be absolutely disgraceful.
Charlotte Hornets @ New Orleans Pelicans March 30, 2025 Injury Report
New Orleans Pelicans:
Dejounte Murray - Out (ruptured Achilles)
Herb Jones - Out (torn rotator cuff)
Trey Murphy III - Out (torn labrum)
Zion Williamson - Out (bruised lower back)
Brandon Boston Jr. - Out (ankle)
CJ McCollum - Out (foot)
Kelly Olynyk - Questionable (left Achilles tendonitis)
Jordan Hawkins - Questionable (back)
Obviously, a lot of these injuries for the Pelicans are absolutely real. Dejounte Murray, Herb Jones, and Trey Murphy III all incurred very serious ailments earlier this year that ultimately cost them the rest of their seasons and could even leak into New Orleans's campaign next year.
However, many of these players are likely only listed on the injury report due to the Pelicans' current place in the standings and their reverse aspirations for the remainder of this season. Zion Williamson will miss his fourth-straight game with a lower back bruise that seemingly came out of nowhere. CJ McCollum remains on the sidelines with a foot contusion. Chances are, these players would be 100 percent available if New Orleans was competing for a playoff spot right now. '
Charlotte Hornets:
LaMelo Ball - Out (ankle)
Tre Mann - Out (back)
Brandon Miller - Out (wrist)
Grant Williams - Out (ACL)
Tidjane Salaun - Questionable (ankle)
Unlike the Pelicans, the Charlotte Hornets didn't need injuries to tank this season. Unfortunately, they got them anyway. LaMelo Ball, Tre Mann, Brandon Miller, and Grant Williams were all lost to serious incidents earlier in the year. Tidjane Salaun played in their last game against the Toronto Raptors but landed on the report as questionable and day-to-day. Josh Okogie missed that game for the Hornets with a hamstring issue but has seemingly been pulled from their report.