The New Orleans Pelicans (22-15) are one of the hottest teams in the NBA right now. Willie Green's squad has posted an 11-5 record over the last month, winning tough games comfortably even when a key contributor or two is unavailable. Lady Luck has even beaten away most of the injury bug blues for once, and it's even showing up on the schedule. The up-and-comers from the Crescent City are checking off two of the most difficult road dates at just the right time, with both aired on national television to boot.
Zion Williamson (right quad contusion) and guard Jose Alvarado (non-COVID illness) are questionable on the injury report. Still, The Pelicans are capable of stealing road wins from Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors as well as Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets. A sweep is far from expected but just one win would go a long way to further boosting the locker room's confidence levels. It might even garner the Pelicans a bit more respect from those national broadcaster's morning talk shows.
Stephen Curry continuing to carry scoring burden for Warriors
The Pelicans could not ask for a more wounded Warriors team to take on. Golden State's front office is reportedly open to parting ways with former All-Star Andrew Wiggins to cut salary and refresh the roster around Curry and Klay Thompson. Chris Paul is out with a fractured hand and Draymond Green is still ramping up after an indefinite suspension. Golden State started Jonathan Kuminga and rookie Trayce Jackson-Davis in a loss to the now-rebuilding Toronto Raptors. They are 2-7 over the past three weeks.
Worse for Steve Kerr, the Curry and Klay ‘Splash Brothers' show is starting to become a solo act and the defense is now a step slow even when Draymond Green is available. New Orleans has a chance to nail at least one nail in the coffin of the former dynasty on ABC.
CJ McCollum, Brandon Ingram, and Trey Murphy III have to keep up their Lilliputian-like barrage from three-point range to negate any otherworldly efforts from Curry. The Pelicans saw enough of that earlier this season back home in the Smoothie King Center.
The Warriors rank 9th for points allowed this season and sports the 24th-worst Defensive Rating over the past 15 games. The Pelicans have allowed the 10th fewest points and earned the second-best defensive rating over that same time span. Willie Green can clear another Coach of the Year hurdle against his mentor and former team.
Denver's altitude is good for accessing the Pelicans
To be the champs you've got to beat the champs, right? The Pelicans ran into the Warriors twice in the postseason over the past decade, once after sweeping CJ McCollum's Portland Trail Blazers, and went home empty-handed on both occasions. Well, it looks like the Warriors' goose is cooked despite Curry's efforts but no one should doubt the Nuggets' staying power while Nikola Jokic is performing at an MVP level.
The Nuggets are hot as well after a slow-ish start by their championship standards. Denver is 8-2 over the last 10 games but they are vulnerable at home. The Orlando Magic just skated out with a victory last week. The Houston Rockets and Magic have won in the Mile High City in the last month. The Oklahoma City Thunder struck gold on both of their trips up the Rocky Mountains. The Pelicans have an opportunity to jump into the Western Conference's top-four seed if they can do the same.
Jonas Valanciunas gets another dance with Jokic in what has always been an entertaining international battle of big men. CJ McCollum can get a like-for-like All-Star comparison against Jamal Murray. Brandon Ingram and hopefully Zion Williamson can go blow for blow with Aaron Gordon and Michael Porter Jr. If not, Herb Jones, Trey Murphy III, and Larry Nance Jr. can throw multiple looks at Mike Malone's schemes.
The Pelicans are catching these two past champions at just the right time. Take two losses and it's easy to make up ground in the standings later. Steal two wins and you're just that much more ahead of schedule. Whatever happens, it was a great set-up schedule-wise and the front office will have 96 more minutes of live-action evaluation against All-World opposition in the books.
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