” Guys are good at remembering that it’s a long season and we don’t need to play our best basketball today, but in March, April, May and June. His statement is enough to haunt Willie Green and his players. Thus expressed the coach of the Pelicans in mid-December, when his team occupied the top of the Western Conference, being well aware that his troop had ” nothing won yet “.
Today, while his team is far from playing its best basketball, his speech is no longer the same. ” It’s simple: we have to be consistent. 48 minutes of play being regular. It doesn’t guarantee us winning when we do it, but it does give us opportunities to win. “, displays the technician, picked up by ESPN.
The latter’s call for consistency is obviously linked to the new sporting situation of his team. Still at the head of an excellent record at 23 wins for 12 defeats at the time of the change of year, the Pelicans have experienced a spectacular decline since: 10 wins for 24 losses.
Their youth is no excuse
The successive passages to the infirmary of Brandon Ingram and especially of Zion Williamson, who has not played since January 2, of course have a lot to do with it. While the interior is still absent, the winger has returned to the courts but NOLA is still struggling to stop his bad momentum.
Worse, with their loss this week to the Lakers, after trailing by 35 points at the break – a negative franchise record – the Pelicans were ejected from their conference’s Top 10.
” Each defeat is worrying at this stage, given our position in the standings and the teams we face. We have to have a sense of urgency, get better starts, be competitive. We cannot find ourselves in situations like the one tonight, in the first quarter, where we were crushed. It’s very difficult to come back in this kind of situation “, recalled CJ McCollum at the end of this defeat.
Similar speech from his young teammate Trey Murphy III, who personally felt he had to do better in defense in particular. ” Our youth is no excuse, especially when trying to be a playoff team. In the end I just gotta be better and we all gotta be better collectively “, he regretted.
Heading for Houston
The positive note in the middle of this chart is the Pelicans’ upcoming schedule. On the program, a double trip to the Rockets floor, then the reception of the Spurs and the Hornets. By winning four times, against three teams at the bottom of the table, the New Orleans team (33 wins – 36 losses) could turn back into the positive and get back into the race for qualification for the play- in.
” The most important game is Houston on Friday. That’s all we can worry about for now. […] We have to focus on this team. Do not take any team lightly “claimed Trey Murphy III, bearing in mind the fact that the Texans successively beat the Celtics, then the Lakers.
With 13 games to play, the Pelicans don’t have much room for maneuver and must capitalize on these four games before continuing with a much more demanding “road trip” (Clippers, Blazers, Warriors and Nuggets). ” Every match is an imperative victory. We see things that way. We don’t have the luxury of losing, having a night off or resting “, released Larry Nance Jr, whose team should still have to go through the “play-in” if it wants to reach the final stages.
| Shots | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Players | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | bp | Int | CT | party | Points |
| Zion Williamson | 29 | 33.0 | 60.8 | 36.8 | 71.4 | 2.0 | 5.0 | 7.0 | 4.6 | 3.4 | 1.1 | 0.6 | 2.2 | 26.0 |
| Brandon Ingram | 32 | 32.9 | 47.2 | 38.6 | 86.5 | 0.4 | 4.6 | 5.0 | 4.8 | 3.2 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 2.7 | 22.9 |
| Cj Mccollum | 62 | 35.0 | 43.4 | 37.9 | 78.9 | 0.8 | 3.5 | 4.4 | 6.0 | 2.6 | 0.9 | 0.5 | 2.0 | 21.1 |
| Jonas Valanciunas | 66 | 24.4 | 54.8 | 34.4 | 82.1 | 2.7 | 6.8 | 9.5 | 1.7 | 1.9 | 0.2 | 0.5 | 3.0 | 14.0 |
| Trey Murphy III | 66 | 29.8 | 47.9 | 40.0 | 90.5 | 0.8 | 2.9 | 3.7 | 1.4 | 0.8 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 2.0 | 13.4 |
| Herb Jones | 53 | 29.0 | 45.3 | 29.3 | 74.4 | 1.4 | 2.6 | 4.1 | 2.4 | 1.3 | 1.6 | 0.6 | 3.2 | 9.7 |
| Naji Marshall | 64 | 24.8 | 42.9 | 30.8 | 79.1 | 0.7 | 3.2 | 3.8 | 2.5 | 1.3 | 0.7 | 0.2 | 1.5 | 9.5 |
| Josh Richardson | 10 | 25.7 | 40.5 | 33.3 | 75.0 | 0.4 | 2.0 | 2.4 | 1.8 | 0.9 | 2.3 | 0.7 | 2.6 | 9.4 |
| jose alvarado | 61 | 21.5 | 41.1 | 33.6 | 81.3 | 0.5 | 1.9 | 2.3 | 3.0 | 1.3 | 1.1 | 0.2 | 2.0 | 9.0 |
| Larry Nance, Jr. | 52 | 22.0 | 61.7 | 35.9 | 67.6 | 1.8 | 4.0 | 5.8 | 1.9 | 0.7 | 0.9 | 0.7 | 2.1 | 7.6 |
| Willy Hernangomez | 34 | 13.0 | 52.2 | 20.0 | 78.6 | 1.7 | 3.4 | 5.0 | 0.9 | 1.1 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 1.8 | 7.3 |
| Jaxson Hayes | 42 | 14.1 | 56.7 | 11.1 | 69.9 | 0.9 | 2.1 | 3.0 | 0.8 | 0.7 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 1.6 | 5.5 |
| Devonte Graham | 53 | 15.3 | 36.8 | 34.7 | 74.6 | 0.2 | 1.1 | 1.4 | 2.2 | 0.5 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 0.9 | 5.3 |
| Kira Lewis, Jr. | 21 | 10.4 | 44.6 | 43.3 | 85.0 | 0.2 | 1.3 | 1.6 | 0.9 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 1.1 | 5.0 |
| Dyson Daniels | 47 | 19.1 | 42.3 | 30.6 | 62.9 | 0.6 | 2.7 | 3.3 | 2.5 | 1.0 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 1.8 | 4.1 |
| Garrett Temple | 20 | 7.1 | 36.6 | 39.1 | 75.0 | 0.2 | 0.5 | 0.7 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 0.5 | 0.1 | 0.7 | 2.1 |
| Dereon Seabron | 5 | 2.3 | 40.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.8 |
