After a scorching-hot start by Sacramento on Monday, a pair of New Orleans players whose season only recently began helped propel the Pelicans to a momentous first-half surge. In the latter half, Brandon Ingram helped New Orleans cement a trip to Las Vegas. In the knockout stage of the inaugural In-Season Tournament, the Pelicans played one of their best games of 2023-24, overcoming an early 15-point deficit to take a 15-point lead of their own. In the fourth quarter, the visitors staved off a few runs by the Kings to move on to Thursday’s tourney semifinals.
Sacramento seized a rapid 32-17 lead in the opening period, but Trey Murphy (in just his second game of the season) and Jose Alvarado (eighth) sparked a turnaround. Murphy and Alvarado each dropped in baskets, and the latter ignited New Orleans with one of his patented out-of-nowhere steals. A Pelicans run quieted a raucous, sold-out Sacramento crowd and sliced the deficit to 36-35 by the end of the quarter. After halftime, Ingram scored 17 of his team-high 30 points, delivering in several spots where New Orleans needed a hoop to quell the hosts’ momentum.
“That was a gutsy win, against a very good team,” third-year head coach Willie Green said, before alluding to how the Pelicans responded after taking an early punch from the Kings. “Our guys are resilient. They’re a resilient group. We’re all grateful for who those guys are.”
THREE POINTS
Fox hunt.
On Nov. 20, New Orleans’ defense limited Sacramento All-Star De’Aaron Fox to his worst performance of the regular season. On Monday, the Pelicans again hounded him from the get-go, making him work hard for everything he created. The lefty point guard did produce 30 points by the end of the night, but he shot just 10/25 from the field and turned the ball over six times (against four assists). Herb Jones continues to play elite defense (no surprise) and has been vital in all three recent New Orleans wins over Sacramento. Jones did damage at the offensive end as well, scoring 23 points, going 3/5 on threes and all but sealing Monday's outcome with a coast-to-coast dunk in the final two minutes.
Depth on display.
The Pelicans approaching full strength is going to make for some difficult decisions on playing time by Green. One of those occurred Monday, when superb first-year guard Jordan Hawkins (third on NBA.com’s Rookie Ladder) was a DNP. Meanwhile, another rising youngster, second-year guard Dyson Daniels, logged just six minutes, after recently starting games when key teammates were sidelined. The Pelicans’ ability to bring Murphy (30 minutes) off the bench gives them a significant weapon for their second unit. The third-year forward scored 16 points and was 3/8 from three-point range. Six NOLA players notched double-digit points.
A meaningful achievement.
After the buzzer, Green was asked how significant it is for the Pelicans franchise to be part of the exclusive four-team field in Las Vegas, for the NBA’s first-ever In-Season Tournament semifinals. Green: “Any time you get an opportunity to be considered one of the first, in a good way, we want to celebrate and relish those opportunities. Say what you want – we’re one of the last four teams in the In-Season Tournament. We’re one of the first teams to ever play in it. We’re a franchise that’s trying to build sustainable winning. This is another step in that direction.”
BY THE NUMBERS
14/31: New Orleans three-point shooting. The visitors were 10/19 at halftime, but understandably couldn’t keep up that rate in the final 24 minutes. The team’s season high in made three-pointers is 17.
18-11: Jonas Valanciunas points and rebounds. With the Pelicans trying to protect a late-game lead, the Kings trapped and pressured the ball, leading to Valanciunas putting the finishing touches on the win with two-handed dunks.
3: Times New Orleans will play in Golden 1 Center this season, with the latter two trips coming in January and April. The Pelicans have already clinched the season series (now up 3-0) and tiebreaker that comes with it against the Kings, something that could become notable in the spring.