Shootaround update: Jazz at Pelicans
By: Jim Eichenhofer, Pelicans.com, @Jim_Eichenhofer
Updates from Wednesday morning’s shootaround at the New Orleans Arena:
• Utah enters at 1-11, with its only win coming on Nov. 13 vs. New Orleans. Pelicans shooting guard Eric Gordon, when asked if the team is thinking about payback after losing to the Jazz seven days ago: “You could look at it that way, but we’re just out there (on the court) trying to win. We definitely were upset at how the outcome was last time, but today is a new day and we’ll look forward to (playing better).”
• Gordon on Utah wing Gordon Hayward, who had 27 points and 10 assists in the Jazz’s lone win: “He’s definitely I would say their best player. He has good size and knows how to put the ball on the ground and shoot. It’s definitely a key matchup. We’ve got to keep guys out of the paint.”
• New Orleans is 3-2 at home (4-6 overall) and seeking its third straight victory in its arena, after beating the Lakers on Nov. 8 and the 76ers on Saturday.
• Anthony Morrow remains No. 1 in the NBA in three-point percentage at 55.6. Anthony Davis is second in the league in blocked shots at 3.7 per game, behind only the incredible defensive start of Indiana’s Roy Hibbert (4.6).
• Darius Miller (foot) and Greg Stiemsma (knee) are out for New Orleans, giving the Pelicans 13 available players, the maximum a team can dress for a game. New Orleans has used the same starting lineup for each of its games, a rarity in the NBA even at this early stage of the 2013-14 season.
• Utah has an extensive list of players out due to injuries, including Trey Burke, Andris Biedrins, Jeremy Evans and Marvin Williams. With Burke sidelined for the first 12 games, the Jazz have had to improvise at point guard, starting John Lucas III. Utah signed backup point guard Diante Garrett hours before last week’s Pelicans-Jazz game.