CHICAGO – The New Orleans Pelicans spent the final stretch of the 2015 offseason excited about the prospects of returning their top 11 scorers from the 2014-15 squad, which reached the playoffs in the formidable Western Conference. Yet a player who wasn’t part of that 11-man group has been one of Pelicans’ best stories early in 2015-16.
Signed 24 hours before Opening Night at Golden State, free agent point guard Ish Smith has ranked among the NBA’s leaders in assists. Although his playing time has been significantly reduced in recent games in conjunction with returns from injury by point guards Tyreke Evans and Norris Cole, Smith has still shone in some of his cameos. On Friday, Smith was pivotal in helping New Orleans (6-16) rally from a fourth-quarter deficit to beat Washington.
Smith may receive an even bigger allotment of minutes tonight, because reserve guard Jrue Holiday is resting, as is the custom in the second game of back-to-backs.
“We’ve got to try to find a way to get him back on the floor,” Pelicans Coach Alvin Gentry said of Smith. “Obviously we’ve got a lot of people at that position now, but he’s shown when he’s had the minutes on the floor, he’s been pretty effective for us.”
Gentry added that “this is the last trip where (Holiday) will be limited as far as back-to-backs.”
Other notes from pregame at the United Center:
- Ryan Anderson (stomach illness) will miss his second straight game, joining Holiday and Quincy Pondexter as not being available for New Orleans. That leaves the Pelicans with 12 players in uniform.