The New Orleans Pelicans made it through 90% of the NBA's 2023-23 slate before hitting an injury-related crisis. Unfortunately, another of the franchise's All-Stars has been on the shelf down the regular season's stretch run yet again. A team fighting for fourth place at the start of March Madness is now limping toward the finish line without Brandon Ingram.
CJ McCollum and Pelicans All-NBA candidate Zion Williamson have been treading water without Ingram during perhaps the toughest two weeks of the season schedule-wise. Willie Green is wary of increasing Williamson's minutes, but the Pelicans are 3-4 since Ingram went down with a knee contusion early in a road game against the Orlando Magic. Williamson (172) and McCollum (158) have struggled to carry the scoring load, as Trey Murphy III (106) is the only other player over 100 points combined over the past seven games.
Opponents are ignoring options like Larry Nance Jr., practically forcing Williamson and McCollum to win games with isolation-heavy offenses. The Pelicans have hit a slog since losing Ingram, but they will keep swinging for a top-six seed.
Green was short on excuses and long on admiration after a loss when talking about the locker room's character.
“I love that group in the locker room,” Green shared. “They bring it every night, even when they get down. They don't quit. They stay together. They don't complain, they go out and fight. Their resiliency is at a high level but our margin of error is small without Brandon (Ingram) and Jose (Alvarado). We are missing 20-plus points and our leader in assists so we have to start the game better. We've done that the last few games but we didn't (against the Suns).
“We've got to put together more of a 48-minute game. Right now it's around 32-35. We've got to get in the 40s. That will give us a better opportunity to win…I thought it was good for three quarters…What I love is we didn't allow (the early deficit) to stop us. We didn't put our heads down. We kept fighting and got back into it.”
Pelicans getting key contributors back just in time
Brandon Ingram should be back sooner than later, much like Dyson Daniels. The Australian returned slightly ahead of schedule, per Green, and has been impressive following a month on the sidelines.
“He was really good. He was physical defensively. You could see something clicked (for Daniels),” Green said. “He was active, getting steals, getting deflections, and he will continue to grow and get better. We all like what he did on the floor (against the Suns).”
Daniels is experienced enough to know the road ahead can get a lot rougher. He was on the court for last year's NBA Play-In Tournament loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder. The 20-year-old spoke like a well-seasoned veteran after his first game back with the Pelicans following knee surgery.
“We need to respond. We’ve got Orlando next game and we know that it’s going to be a big one. They’re a good team and match up well against us,” admitted Daniels. “They got us last time, and these next seven games are crucial, especially these at home. We’ve been a better road team all year than we have been at home. So, we need to show that we can defend our home court, and we can’t let teams come in here and kick our ass. I am looking forward to these next two games at home, and we need to get these (wins).”
Follow Us
Subscribe