Takeaways from Warriors' Loss to Pelicans: Porzingis Reality Setting In

Without Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler, Al Horford and Kristaps Porzingis, the Golden State Warriors (30-28) fell short to the New Orleans Pelicans (17-42) 113-109 on Tuesday at Smoothie King Center.

De'Anthony Melton had a season-high 28 points, and Moses Moody added 21.

Zion Williamson had a team-high 26 points, and Saddiq Bey chipped in 18.

The Warriors had 21 turnovers and shot just 24 percent from three.

Here are three takeaways from Tuesday's game.

Porzingis Reality Setting In

When Kristaps Porzingis plays, there's no doubt that he's valuable on both ends of the court.

The issue is he doesn't just have Achilles tendinitis.

Porzingis was diagnosed with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), and though it's not clear when he first got it, it's believed he's had it at least since the 2024 playoffs.

In the two regular seasons since, Porzingis has played in 60 regular-season games and missed 82.

Was this latest illness that forced Porzingis out of the lineup Sunday and Tuesday related to POTS? Whether it was or not, you don't want to put yourself in a position in which you're relying on Porzingis.

The Warriors don't have obvious ways to improve their roster this offseason. Their best-case scenario is Porzingis taking a huge pay cut from the $30.7 million salary he has this season and hoping they can keep him healthy enough to play about every other game in 2026-27.

Expecting anything more than that could torpedo their season.

As a side note, Jonathan Kuminga had a season-high 27 points on 9-of-12 shooting in his Hawks debut Tuesday.

Pain.

Spencer Is in a Funk

In 23 minutes, Pat Spencer had just five points (2-of-7 shooting), four assists and three turnovers.

In his last five games, Spencer is a minus-39. He has just 21 points over his last four games.

Against the Pelicans, it was particularly noticeable how much he struggled to handle the ball against their lengthy defenders.

All things considered, Spencer is having a good season. He earned the rest-of-season contract he signed on Feb. 7. But with Stephen Curry injured and the Warriors decimated by injuries, this stretch is his best chance to solidify a role next season.

It's not going well.

The Warriors have 24 games left. Spencer will have more opportunities to impress. But it's looking more and more like they should look elsewhere for a depth point guard next season.

Melton's Recovery Offers Hope for Jimmy Butler

Melton had another great game Tuesday, finishing with 28 points, four rebounds, three assists and one steal. He was a plus-nine, which should extend his already dominant lead in net rating among Warriors.

Two things stood out about Melton's performance. First, he played 28 minutes, which is his highest total of the season. Steve Kerr said in his pregame press conference that Melton's minutes restriction could be coming to end soon, which is great news.

Second, Melton had one of the Warriors' best dunks of the season, and shown below:

DE'ANTHONY MELTON SLAM pic.twitter.com/xtDwV1sjXE
— Golden State Warriors (@warriors) February 25, 2026

This dunk shows Melton is all the way back athletically, which is great news for Jimmy Butler.

Of course, Butler (36) is nine years older than Melton (27), so their ACL recoveries might not be the same. But the fact that Melton is playing this well just 15 months after his injury offers hope that Butler can be back close to full strength by next season's playoffs.

Butler suffered his injury on Jan. 19, and the 2027 playoffs will start in mid-April, 15 months after the injury.