New Orleans Pelicans head coach Willie Green likes to break down the schedule into 10-game segments but sometimes there are inflection points that must be recognized. For instance, CJ McCollum and Larry Nance Jr. convened a mid-November players-only meeting for the struggling Pelicans. Riding a five-game losing streak at the time, the Pelicans have been a top-10 offense and defense ever since.
New Orleans has gone 10-5 over the last month and the schedule has not been easy. Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram led wins over the Philadelphia 76ers, Denver Nuggets, Dallas Mavericks, LA Clippers, and Minnesota Timberwolves. The Pelicans beat the Sacramento Kings three times already, winning both the season tie-breaker and a spot in the NBA In-Season Tournament semifinals.
Opening up the lines of communication led to a locker room playing with more trust in their teammates. Williamson and Ingram also learned a bit more about proper championship-caliber leadership. Don't take my word for it. Just look at the stats. The Pelicans are seventh in points scored per game, sixth in assists, and have the fourth-best field goal percentage since the team meeting. They are sharing the ball and running to spots with extra effort on both ends of the court. That speaks volumes about the franchise's chemistry through adversity.
Williamson, Ingram still learning how to lead Pelicans
Williamson or Ingram led the team in scoring for all but two games during this run. Murphy III mopped up in garbage time against the Los Angeles Lakers in Las Vegas while Jonas Valanciunas feasted against the San Antonio Spurs. This is a talented supporting cast but the two All-Stars have to lead by example to get McCollum and Co. on board.
“There's no winning basketball games if you're not all swimming in the same direction. And for whatever reason, early on we felt a bit splintered, even when we were 4-1. It just felt a little that we could be better. I thought we did a great job of addressing exactly what we needed to address and walking into the meeting with a clear direction and a path the meeting was supposed to take. And it took that,” Nance Jr. told ESPN.
“We just weren't on the same page,” Williamson agreed. “Now…we know what we want to do, we know how we're going to do it, and [if] we win, we win. But if we lose, it's easier to pinpoint where we messed up.”
Both Ingram and Williamson have scored over 30+ points in a game three times each since the players-only pow-wow. The Pelicans woke up in a first-place Western Conference battle last New Year's Day. They play five, possibly six, teams that will have losing records at the time of the game over the next two weeks. With eight games until New Year's fireworks start popping, Williamson and Ingram have a great opportunity to ignite a run up the standings.
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