MEMPHIS – New Orleans has been one of the NBA’s premier offensive teams for much of the 2018-19 season, but on Saturday the baskets weren’t coming nearly as easily as they usually do for the Pelicans. Memphis held New Orleans to its lowest point total of the campaign, limiting the Pelicans to just 39.5 percent shooting from the floor, also their poorest rate in ’18-19. Julius Randle tallied 21 points to lead New Orleans, which didn’t have any individual player in double-digit scoring until the third quarter.
IT WAS OVER WHEN…
Memphis longtime franchise player Mike Conley dropped in a floater and-one, giving the Grizzlies a 10-point lead with less than two minutes remaining. Rookie big Jaren Jackson then dropped in a hook shot to put the hosts up by a dozen.
PELICANS PLAYER OF THE GAME
New Orleans rookie Kenrich Williams posted a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds, while also exhibiting some of his passing ability by handing out seven assists.
“He played a good game tonight,” Alvin Gentry said, before alluding to Williams’ versatility. “He is going to play a good game almost every night because he is going to do something on the floor that can help you. I thought he came up with a lot of offensive rebounds that were just strictly hustle rebounds. He didn’t shoot the ball as well as he is capable of shooting it, but shot it with a lot of confidence, and then I thought he did a great job at finding an open man and making easy plays for assists.”
FOCUS ON: AN ODD MATCHUP
Based on a major trade Thursday featuring longtime Memphis foundation piece Marc Gasol, the Grizzlies were essentially a brand-new team Saturday, presenting a challenge for New Orleans. Williams pointed out afterward that the Pelicans didn’t find out who would start for the Grizzlies until 10 minutes before the game began.
“I mean, we all know the guys in the league,” Williams said of Memphis’ numerous proven NBA players, “but yeah it is kind of hard. But you can’t make excuses. You’ve got to go out there and get it done.”
New Grizzlies additions Avery Bradley, Delon Wright and C.J. Miles combined to score 17 points, but Bradley’s bigger impact came from his aggressiveness on the defensive end.
For New Orleans, Anthony Davis was expected to play around 25 minutes in the back-to-back, but ended up being extended to 34. The Pelicans also got E’Twaun Moore back from injury and put Stanley Johnson on the floor for his second straight game since arriving in a trade. Perhaps the only semblance of continuity for either Southwest Division squad was that New Orleans used the same starting lineup for a second straight night, but otherwise the rotation again needed to be reconfigured.
BY THE NUMBERS
7/13: Randle’s shooting performance from the field. Among the eight Pelicans who played the most minutes Saturday, Randle was the only one who made more than half of his shot attempts.
19, 14: Joakim Noah’s points and rebounds off the bench for Memphis. For a player who went through a long stretch of inactivity while on New York’s roster in recent years, it was a throwback night to his best Chicago seasons.
6/33: New Orleans three-point shooting. Memphis did not fare well either, at 8/29.