Pelicans Faced With Elimination At Home In Game 4 Against The Thunder

New Orleans must pull out all the stops to avoid their season ending on Monday night versus the Thunder.

Apr 21, 2024; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; New Orleans Pelicans guard CJ McCollum (3) drives to the / Alonzo Adams-USA TODAY Sports

New Orleans, LA- Monday night is do-or-die for the New Orleans Pelicans as they host the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 4 of their first-round series. The Thunder hold a commanding 3-0 lead after back-to-back 20-point blowout victories. New Orleans was held to their lowest playoff-scoring output since 2011, scoring only 85 points on Saturday afternoon. Despite the daunting task ahead, the Pelicans are taking a one-game-at-a-time mantra ahead of Monday night's matchup.

For the Pelicans to have any chance of winning Game 4, taking care of the basketball is a top priority. The Thunder are averaging about 20 points a game off the Pels turnovers. New Orleans turned the ball over 21 times in Game 3, including eight in a crucial third-quarter stretch when the Thunder were able to pull away. Brandon Ingram must also find a way to get going earlier for the Pelicans.

Thunder forward Lu Dort has been physical with Ingram all series, pushing him off his spot and playing aggressive defense. Ingram has found some rhythm in the third quarters of the past two games, scoring 12 points in each, but the games were getting out of reach earlier. New Orleans has tinkered with lineups and attempted to go smaller, not playing Jonas Valanciunas at all in the second half of Game 3. The decision backfired as Larry Nance, Jr. only scored two points in the second half. Thunder center Chet Holmgren dominated the paint defensively with four blocked shots. Holmgren has more blocks (11) than the entire Pelicans team (10) and has altered many shots in the paint.

Oklahoma City star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has carried the offensive load for the Thunder, averaging 28 points in this series and looking every bit of the MVP candidate he was in the regular season. Whether it's been Herb Jones, Trey Murphy III, or any other Pelican defender, has had little effect on the efficiency of Gilgeous-Alexander. New Orleans has not shot the ball well from downtown through the first three games of this series. The Pelicans are averaging just 27% shooting from deep, while the Thunder are averaging 42% from deep. That has to change in Game 4 for New Orleans to have a chance.

Without Zion Williamson in these playoffs, the Pelicans have not scored more than 92 points in the playoffs. CJ McCollum, Trey Murphy III, and Herb Jones need to hit shots to loosen up the defense for Ingram to operate in the midrange. B.I. needs to be aggressive and start shooting earlier in games. He attempted just two shots in the first half of Game 2 and only two shots in the second quarter of Game 3 as the Thunder went on a 14-0 run. There is no tomorrow for the Pelicans if they lose on Monday, just another offseason of what-ifs in another season lost.