Pelicans-Spurs Preseason Preview
The New Orleans Pelicans will be back on the road this preseason. This time they head to San Antonio to take on the Spurs Sunday evening. Even though it's preseason, both teams are heading in opposite directions. The Pelicans come into this contest 2-0, after defeating the Detroit Pistons 107-101 in its preseason home opener.
The San Antonio Spurs currently have an 0-2 record coming into tonight's game after losing to the Orlando Magic 102-99 on Thursday. There have been many encouraging signs so far from the Pelicans. One of them has to be the play of rookie Dyson Daniels.
While his offense has yet to be consistent this preseason, he has shown signs on that end of the court. He was the primary catalyst in their opening game win against the Bulls. He scored 10 points in the last 4 minutes of that contest to seal the victory. His defensive presence so far is without question. Through the first 2 games, Daniels has amassed 8 steals already and leads the team in deflections.
Another encouraging sign for the Pelicans is the emergence of the bench. In each game, a bench player has stepped in to lead the team in scoring. In the Bulls game, Devonte' Graham scored 21 points to lead the team. In the next game Jose' Alvarado grabbed the scoring mantle by pouring in 28 points in the Pelicans victory. Bench production like this is key as health has played a major factor so far this preseason. More may be the same on Sunday.
Jaxson Hayes has been officially ruled out as he injured and tore the UCL on his left elbow. He will be re-evaluated in 2 weeks. CJ McCollum, who also missed the Pistons game, will be out again on Sunday as he nurses some ankle soreness. Brandon Ingram who has yet to play this preseason is listed as questionable again with a foot injury. Herb Jones is also questionable as he is dealing with a rib injury suffered in the Bulls game. Finally, Trey Murphy III is questionable as he deals with some foot soreness as well.
Besides Hayes' injury, none of these seems overly concerning to the team, and maybe more on the precautionary side to sit some of these guys. This does allow opportunities for other players to step up and prove their worth. That opportunity starts tonight.
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