Pelicans Try To Close Road Trip On Rocky Mountain High Note
The New Orleans Pelicans awoke Thursday morning to find themselves holding the ninth seed in the Western Conference heading into their matchup with the Denver Nuggets tonight.
With just six games remaining in the regular season, the fight for playoff seedings is as volatile as ever. The Pelicans are a tiebreaker behind the Los Angeles Lakers for eighth and one loss ahead of the Oklahoma City Thunder in 10th.
Jan 31, 2023; Denver, Colorado, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram (14) fouls Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) in the second quarter at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports
New Orleans is 1-2 against the Nuggets this season, which includes a 113-122 loss the last two times these teams met in Denver. Then, the Pels were in the tail end of a 10-game losing streak. Now, the Pelicans come in having won six of their last 10.
Denver may be playing without two-time MVP Nikola Jokic. Jokic was listed as questionable with a calf injury.
That would be a major boost to the Pelicans chance of winning and completing the road trip with three wins and an above .500 record heading into the month of April and their final home stand.
The Nuggets are a dramatically different team without their big man, finishing 3-5 when he sits this season and 5-11 over the last two campaigns.
Three point shooting should play a big part in whether or not the Pelicans can steal another road victory. In the first three games of the series, New Orleans has made just 30 percent of its attempts from beyond the arc and averages a minus-11 in points from threes.
In the month of March, the Pelicans are leading the NBA in three point field goal percentage (40.6) and teams are shooting just 34.3 percent against them.
The Nuggets, however, have held their opponents to 33.2 percent from deep.
Trey Murphy III should be a bigger part of the offense than he has been in games past against Denver. He's averaging 12.0 ppg against the Nuggets so far, on fewer than 10 shot attempts. Expect those numbers to rise. His 55 three-pointers since the All-Star break are fourth-most in the NBA.
Both he and Brandon Ingram still have a chance to end the month of March with a 50/40/90 shooting split. Murphy is shooting 51.1 percent overall, 46.3 percent from three, and 93.8 percent at the line, while Ingram is at 52.2, 40.0, and 88.7 in those categories.
Willie Green would like to see CJ McCollum get on track as well. CJ has struggled against the Nuggets, particularly from long range where he's shooting below 13 percent.
And if Jokic is out, it's another opportunity to utilize Jonas Valanciunas on the interior. Neither DeAndre Jordan nor Thomas Bryant presents much of a challenge in post up situations on the defensive end, though both will attack the offensive glass.
Defensively, no one in the league may be better on the perimeter than Herbert Jones. It's no surprise that he leads the Pelicans in average +/- this month (6.6). Just about the only thing keeping him from an All-Defense nod is the Pelicans slide during the first two and a half months of 2023.
This is another must-win for the New Orleans Pelicans, as each game from here on out is likely to be.
They need to rebound from their difficult loss to Golden State, snatch a win, and hopefully some momentum for the home stretch.
New Orleans Pelicans (38-38) vs Denver Nuggets (51-24)
When: 9:00 PM CT
Where: Ball Arena
Watch: TNT
Listen: WRNO 99.5 FM
Read More Pelicans Scoop Articles:
- Coach Green Comments On Team's Body Language
- CJ McCollum Career At A Crossroads
- Pelicans Playing Out Regular Season As Underdogs
- NBA Championship Formula Revisited
- Willie Green's Rotations Need More Time To Build Rhythm
- Herb Jones As Center Unlocks Options For Pelicans
- Lineups To Lean On And Learn From These Last 2 Weeks
