New Orleans Pelicans Shooting Aces And Defensive Effort Needed To Stop Red-Hot Kevin Durant And The Phoenix Suns

New Orleans, LA - The New Orleans Pelicans (25-17) host the Phoenix Suns (22-18) Friday night at the Smoothie King Center. Both teams enter the game winners of seven of their last ten games, as each team climbs up the Western Conference standings.

New Orleans hopes Brandon Ingram is back on track for good against the high-powered Phoenix Suns offense, led by superstar Kevin Durant. Ingram notched his third career triple-double in the Pels win on Wednesday night.

His 28 points scored broke a seven-game streak that saw B.I. score less than 20 points. The Pelicans will need a big effort from Ingram and company to keep pace with Phoenix.

Kevin Durant is the NBA's fifth-leading scorer, averaging 28.9 points per game. Durant and guard Devin Booker form the second-highest-scoring duo in the league. They average over 55 points a game this season.

Phoenix added dynamic scorer Bradley Beal in the offseason to give Phoenix a trio of deadly scorers. Beal is shooting 50.7% from the field this season, the highest of his career. Phoenix is averaging the third-most points scored over their current three-game winning streak.

The Pelicans are right behind them at No.4 in the NBA over the last three games. New Orleans three-point shooting has been a pleasant surprise this season.

The Pelicans are No. 3 in the league in three-point shooting percentage this year. That is a steep increase from No. 14 in the NBA a year ago. New Orleans set the franchise record for most three-points in a game on Wednesday when they made 25 from deep.

The emergence of rookie Jordan Hawkins and the continued improvement of Trey Murphy III gives the Pelicans the spacing they need to exploit defenses inside or out.

The Suns don't have a lot of interior depth, so this is one area the Pels should have a key advantage. Phoenix is middle-of-the-pack in opponent points per game in the paint and rebounding.

New Orleans is a Top 10 team in both categories and with the muscle of Zion Williamson and Jonas Valanciunas, the Pelicans should dominate the interior. Phoenix will look to use their dynamic scorers to put pressure on the Pels defense all night.

Phoenix is fourth in the NBA in free-throw attempts (26) and free-throw percentage (82.3%), so if it comes down to a close game, the Suns definitely have the advantage at the line.

New Orleans ranks No. 23 in free throw percentage (76.7%), and those numbers plummet in clutch time games. The Pelicans are 0-6 in games decided by three points or less.

New Orleans is in the middle of an important four-game home stand against some key Western Conference opponents. After Friday's game, the team gets a nice three-day rest before hosting the Utah Jazz on Tuesday.