Mavericks hoping to end skid against hopeless Pelicans

The Dallas Mavericks return home hoping to get back in the win column. If they can't get it done against a New Orleans Pelicans team that just picked up their first win last night, the pressure that is already building around the team is going to really ramp up. Especially considering that the Pelicans are missing Zion Williamson and are playing on the second night of a back-to-back.

Both teams are missing their biggest stars, with the Pelicans down Williamson, and the Mavericks down both Kyrie Irving and Anthony Davis. Dallas is undoubtedly the more talented roster, but they haven't been playing like it recently.

Dallas most recently lost to the Houston Rockets on Monday, a game in which they only scored 102 points. They're dead last in the NBA in points per game, offensive rating, and points in the paint allowed, which is not how the Mavericks envisioned the start of the season going. It doesn't help that they've been hampered by injuries, which were entirely foreseeable, and have a roster that just does not fit together.

Cooper Flagg is still struggling to adjust to his point guard role, and the Mavericks don't have a lot of shooting around him. It's a mess of an offense, to say the least, and there's no fix in sight.

Oct 29, 2025; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg (32) looks on during the first quarter against the Indiana Pacers at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

And then there's the Pelicans. They finally got a win by beating the Charlotte Hornets 116-112 on Tuesday night, as they had eight different players hit double-figures scoring. They were led by Trey Murphy III, who had 21 points, but also got solid contributions from rookies Jeremiah Fears and Derik Queen. But there lies the biggest story around the Pelicans.

They gave their own unprotected first-round pick in the 2026 draft to jump up ten spots, from 22 to 12, to select Derik Queen in the 2025 draft. Keep in mind that the 2026 draft looks LOADED, and that the pick is almost guaranteed to have some of the best odds to land the first pick. So, when the team gets out to this bad a start, that really ramps up the pressure on a new front office.

This is one of the weird early-season games where there's already a lot at stake.