Oklahoma City Completes Sweep Of Offensively-Challenged Pelicans

New Orleans goes out with a stinker at home on the offensive end to end their season.

Apr 29, 2024; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram (14) looks on / Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

New Orleans, LA - The New Orleans Pelicans season ends with a 97-89 defeat to the Oklahoma City Thunder. OKC completes the four-game sweep and will play the winner of the Los Angeles Clippers and Dallas Mavericks series. The Pelicans season ends disappointingly, and they have lots of questions heading into the offseason.

With their season on the line, the Pelicans played to a first-quarter tie with the Thunder at 21. CJ McCollum made his first shot of the night after going 0/7 in the first quarter of Game 3. The Pelicans remained cold from downtown, but so were the Thunder. New Orleans shot 2/12 from beyond the arc. Oklahoma City went 3/13 from distance. Naji Marshall provided a spark for the Pelicans off the bench, leading them with five points in the opening period. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with six points, but it took seven attempts to get those. 

Both teams were sloppy in the second quarter, with each committing nine turnovers in the half. Brandon Ingram could not get his offense going, shooting 1/7 in the half and scoring just four points. Jordan Hawkins finally got some playing time after he was inserted in the second quarter. Hawkins played four minutes but did not score. Jalen Williams led all scorers with 13 points for the Thunder. Oklahoma City carried a 44-43 lead at the half. 

Apr 29, 2024; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Pelicans guard Trey Murphy III (25) and / Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

Unlike Game 3, Jonas Valanciunas played in the third quarter and scored six quick points. He would eventually have to sit down after picking up his fourth foul. OKC took advantage with 12 paint points, led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who scored ten points in the quarter. Brandon Ingram's struggle to score the basketball continued. He missed all three shots, but his two free throws at the end of the quarter gave the Pelicans the lead heading into the fourth quarter. It was only the second quarter the Pelicans won all season, the first since the fourth quarter of Game 1. 

The game was nip and tuck midway through the quarter before Oklahoma City went on an 18-2 run and opened up a lead that the Thunder would not relinquish. Brandon Ingram made just one basket in the quarter and finished with eight points on 2/14 shooting. Trey Murphy III scored seven points on 3/10 shooting in another dreadful shooting night for the Pelicans. New Orleans failed to score more than 92 points in any game this series. The Pelicans shot just 27% from beyond the arc in the four games.

New Orleans will use the offseason to address Brandon Ingram's contract, the free agency of Naji Marshall and Jonas Valanciunas, and overall roster construction to make sure the next season doesn't end as this one did.