The New Orleans Pelicans in their last 10 games are 4-6, and have averaged 107 points, 41 rebounds, 24 assists, 9 steals and 3 blocks per game while shooting 45.9% from the field. Their opponents in this series the Oklahoma City Thunder are 8-2, averaging 116 points, 43 rebounds, 27 assists, 9.5 steals, and 5.4 blocks per game. While also shooting 49.8% from the field, and holding their opponents to an average of 103.5 points. Is this Thunder team on a heat check, or are the New Orleans Pelicans just not playing up to par come playoff time because of the injury bug that has infected this team.
New Orleans Pelicans Continuing To Choke In The 2024 NBA Playoffs
Nothing has gone right for this Pelicans team in their first-round series against the OKC Thunder, and this sequence and series has mad it clear how tough it’s been to find anything to feel good about for this Pelicans team. The Thunder held a firm lead most of the afternoon before walking away with a 106-85 victory in game 3 on Saturday, which gave them a commanding 3-0 lead in the series. This series is essentially over, and the Pels season will end along with it. Even if New Orleans played its best basketball we’ve seen this season, this Thunder team is probably too talented and too determined to be taken down, especially this early.
The Pelicans season will eventually come to an end, and it’ll probably be more bitter than the feeling they had last season when OKC sent them home on an early vacation with a victory in the Play-In Tournament. This year the end of this road has a completely different feel. This time around, the fearless pelicans have looked scared and hesitant as Oklahoma City’s defense has made them look like statues of themselves. While the Thunder have proved they are one of the most dangerous defensive units in the NBA, they shouldn’t get all the credit for their opponent’s offensive collapse this series.
New Orleans Pelicans Offense Fluctuating Between Bad And Atrocious Throughout This Series
In the 124-92 defeat in game 2 on Wednesday, New Orleans suffered its most lopsided loss in a playoff series since 2009. Then on Saturday, it was held to the fewest points by the franchise in a playoff game since 2011. They also started the series scoring just 92 or fewer points in three consecutive games, which hasn’t been done since the Raptors in 2016. The most frustrating this is that most of the issues have been a result of self-sabotage.
The coaching staff placed a major emphasis on taking care of the ball coming into the series, knowing that Oklahoma City led the league in points off turnovers this season. While they did a decent job Game 1, the Pelicans fell apart in the last two games. After turning the ball over 18 times in Game 2, They followed that with 21 turnovers in Game 3 as the Thunder kept pouring in the easy baskets. Throughout the three games, The pelicans are averaging more than every other playoff team in turnovers with a grand total of 53 turnovers which is only three fewer than their total number of assists which is 56.
What Is Going On With This Pelicans Big Three???
More than just the turnovers, the most frustrating thing has to be the lack of production from the two remaining stars Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum, knowing that the pressure is on with Zion Williamson out with a hamstring injury. They combined for just 35 points on 14-of-36 shooting in Saturday’s loss, and there hasn’t been a point in any of the last three losses where they’ve been executing at a high level. The Oklahoma City Thunder have made everything difficult for the Pelicans.
CJ McCollum hasn’t shot the ball well throughout the series, but game 3 may have been his worst performance of the playoffs. He shot 2-of-8 on 3’s and turned the ball over six time, which is tied for most ever in a playoff game. CJ McCollum came out aggressive, but missed his first seven shots, and put New Orleans in an early hole. McCollum was playing the best basketball of his career leading into the postseason, but has now gone cold when it counts. Without that extra scoring punch, the Pelicans has looked stagnant in the half court and the spacing is horrible.
Even with McCollum’s struggles, the hope for the Pels was Brandon Ingram would look more like the star he became during his first playoff run in 2022. As great as he was then against the Phoenix Suns, he’s been disastrous this time around against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Brandon Ingram has been held under 20 points in all three losses this series and posted single-digit scoring during the first half in all three games. Not only has his scoring been down, but he’s also tallied just seven assists in three games against the Thunder.
The Last Chance For This Pelicans Teams To Comeback Or Go Out With Pride
Without both of these guys scoring and playmaking ability, the Pelicans just don’t have enough to create consistent offense against the Thunder’s top notch defense. The Pelicans will have one more chance to show some pride and avoid complete embarrassment in this series. But with the way they’ve been playing in these 2024 playoffs, Game 4 will likely be more of the same from an offense that’s lost its identity and a team that’s lost it’s swagger unfortunately. To keep up to date with more basketball and sports news follow me @Crain_Sports1 on twitter and to check out more articles by me at Hardwoodheroics.com/author/brycecrain.
