Game Preview: New Orleans Pelicans Look to Rebound Against Los Angeles Clippers

Dec 2, 2016; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis (23) tips the ball in as LA Clippers center DeAndre Jordan (6) defends during the first quarter at the Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

The New Orleans Pelicans will look to rebound from a difficult loss Thursday night, as they play against the powerhouse Los Angeles Clippers.

Thursday could not have gone worse for the New Orleans Pelicans.

New Orleans lost a home game against the Philadelphia 76ers Thursday night. Philly held the worst record in the NBA and went into the game with an eight game losing streak.

However, the Pels shot under 40% from the field and could not stop the Sixers defensively. Now, New Orleans will try to rebound from their low-point for the season.

It will not be an easy task, as the Los Angeles Clippers are next on the schedule. Los Angeles is now 16-7 on the season, the third best record in the Western Conference. L.A. is coming off a tough loss of their own, as they lost to the Golden State Warriors Wednesday night.

The Pelicans have already lost to the Clippers once this year, a 114-96 defeat to Los Angeles on December 3rd, one week ago. Blake Griffin and Jamal Crawford stole the show, while Chris Paul ran the offense beautifully and DeAndre Jordan held down the paint with ease.

New Orleans got dominated in every facet of the game last Saturday. The Pelicans’ job tonight could be even more difficult, with the possibility of Jrue Holiday missing the game. While Holiday did struggle against CP3, it will be tough for anyone to replace him against one of the best point guards in the league.

The Clippers have won eight of their past 11 matchups with the Pelicans. It’s a matchup Blake Griffin has held down Anthony Davis in. Davis was limited in the matchup a week ago, scoring 21 points and just six rebounds. If Holiday does not play, their best chance of winning will likely come from an AD explosion.

The morale for the New Orleans Pelicans has gotten dire. Plenty of quotes after Thursday’s game were not pleasant. This is a team that knows the expectations fans and management have set. They also know they are not playing up to those expectations.

This game will be a true test on how resilient the Pelicans can be to the gauntlet of the NBA. The players seem checked out, after a big loss to a bottom dweller. Now, they come face-to-face with one of the best. How they show up will give everyone a better insight into the true character of this Pels’ squad.

Dec 2, 2016; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans rookie guard Buddy Hield (24) drives to the basket past LA Clippers forward Wesley Johnson (33) during the second half at the Smoothie King Center. The Clippers defeat the Pelicans 114-96. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Who, When, Where and How to Watch

When and Where: The game will be played at 9:30 PM CST in New Orleans.

How To Watch: The game will be broadcast on NBA TV

Injuries:

New Orleans: Quincy Pondexter (Left Knee), Tyreke Evans (Right Knee) and Dante Cunningham (Right Fibula Fracture) are all out. Jrue Holiday (Left Turf Toe) and E’Twaun Moore (Right Toe Contusion) are both questionable.

Los Angeles: Blake Griffin (Sore Right Knee) is a game-time decision. Ray Felton (Personal) is doubtful. Brice Johnson (Back) is out.

Probable Starting Lineups:

New Orleans: PG Jrue Holiday, SG Tim Frazier, SF Solomon Hill, PF Anthony Davis, C Omer Asik

Los Angeles: PG Chris Paul, SG J.J. Redick, SF Luc Richard Mbah A Moute, PF Blake Griffin, C DeAndre Jordan

Other Players to Watch:

New Orleans: E’Twaun Moore, Buddy Hield, Terrence Jones, Anthony Brown and Langston Galloway

Los Angeles: Jamal Crawford, Paul Pierce, Austin Rivers, Brandon Bass and Marreese Speights

What’s Next for the Pelicans?

The New Orleans Pelicans will continue traveling for their road back-to-back for a game tomorrow, as they head to Phoenix so play the Suns. Tip is scheduled for 7:30 PM CST.

New Orleans Pelicans Have Replaced One Problem with Another

The New Orleans Pelicans are struggling mightily early into the 2016-2017 season.

The Pels are holding a 7-16 record, with a four game losing streak to boot. New Orleans is currently 4.5 games out of a playoff spot in the Western Conference. Injuries to key players Jrue Holiday and Tyreke Evans have become the go-to argument for the team’s problems.

However, there is a problem that is glaring to this squad. In the offseason, Dell Demps and the New Orleans Pelicans were looking to solve clear issues with the team.

Players like Eric Gordon and Ryan Anderson were helping the team execute efficiently on offense. The big problem became the predictability of that offense and the chaotically bad defense. On offense, Gordon’s injuries kept him out from being a marksman, while Rhino’s post up and isolation offense stalled the team’s flow.

On defense, Anderson could not guard the paint with Davis, constantly getting backed down with ease and suffered from poor help defense. On the other side, Gordon got blown by his man on a regular basis and failed to get his hands in passing lanes, to disrupt opposing ball movement.

The Pels thought the money they were spending on their marksmen could be used to sign plenty of guys with multi-dimensional games, who balanced out the roster next to AD and Holiday. It seemed like a great plan. That led to the signings of E’Twaun Moore, Terrence Jones, Langston Galloway and Solomon Hill.

New Orleans also drafted Buddy Hield, the first rookie the Pels have kept since AD and Austin Rivers, back in 2012. The plan seemed to be a well-thought out one. Bring in players with all-around games, to help Anthony Davis and develop the youngsters to work with AD and Jrue’s skill sets.

The fix to the problem of a chaotic offense and lackluster defense was set in place for 2016-2017. Unfortunately, fixing the old problem has created a new one on the Bayou.

So what is that problem?

The New Orleans Pelicans have become a team of pieces that have the long-term potential to be great, but are not right now capable of filling their expected roles.

For Buddy Hield, it’s a problem of finding his game at the NBA level. Buddy was a fantastic scoring guard at the University of Oklahoma. However, the NBA is a different ballgame. The defenses Hield has played against know his strengths and know how to limit them.

His defense is still failing to adjust. While he has some athleticism, he’s struggling mightily to keep up with the speed and size of the opposing NBA guards. He may need to bulk up and work on his conditioning.

Another big problem is his range, something not expected to be a huge issue. The three-point line is farther away in the NBA and it seems clear Hield is still working on adjusting his range. His 27.7% is clear evidence he has not found the rhythm as of yet.

For Langston Galloway, it is a matter of consistency. He is probably the best offensive option from behind the arc, shooting 38% from deep. However, his point totals change drastically from one game to another. He has the marksman mentality, but whether he’s making his looks or not depends on the night.

On defense, Galloway is getting beat. While he is filling both the shooting and point guard roles off the bench, he has not shown he can guard either position effectively.

Terrence Jones has been the best of the bunch so far. His 10 points and five rebounds per contest off the bench are much needed, for a team ranked near the bottom in scoring and boards. Jones’ problems persist in his mental game.

A good portion of the time, Jones seems lost in the game. Whether it is missing wide open layups, not guarding his man on defense or bone-headed plays, that result in turnovers or easy baskets. When he’s on, he can be a game changer. Yet when he’s off, it kills New Orleans.

Solomon Hill has been the most disappointing. His shot is non-existent from behind the arc and his defense has taken much longer to develop than expected. He came in with lower expectations, until he found his role in the system and crafted his game a bit. Even with those expectations lowered, he’s not even close to matching them.

Then there’s E’Twaun Moore. Moore’s defense has been great and he’s starting to find his driving ability on the offensive end. Yet looking at Moore and the rest of the new additions, one thing is clear…

None of the new additions are game changers offensively or defensively. They each bring a balance attack and defense that, on some nights, can help the team. However, their inconsistencies and lack of stand-out skills make it easy to play against.

There is not a new Pelican that changes the gameplan of the opposing team. Guys like Hill and Moore are left wide-open from behind the arc, as teams are not scared of their shot.

Hield and Galloway are respected deep, yet are not solid enough in their driving games and dribbling for opposing guards to respect either. They just give them the lane and let them try to beat the bigs inside.

To put it simply, the new Pelicans were meant to bring a balanced attack. However, none of them are great in any certain area. That makes it easy for the team to play defense, like the Sixers did Thursday. Instead of AD and Jrue having a balanced attack, they have opponents focus them and decide to let the role players try to beat them.

Looking at the record, it is clear those new players have not done that. Will it get better over time? Are guys like Hield, Moore, Hill, Jones and Galloway going to develop their games, to become more complete? Is it time to start over? None of those can be answered right now.

The one thing that can be concluded so far is the Pelicans have a new problem with their team. While this is no longer a one-dimensional squad who does not fit each other, the issue now moves to a team that has no true dimension. This year may seem like a lost cause already. However, if this team wants success down the road, this campaign should be spent trying to find out their players and what kind of focus the New Orleans Pelicans should take going down the road.