The New Orleans Pelicans visited the Miami Heat with the deck stacked against them. The Pelicans had not won a game in South Beach since 2017 and Brandon Ingram was ruled out for two weeks following an MRI on his knee. Dyson Daniels is also still recuperating from a knee injury, meaning Willie Green's rotations would be without two key contributors. So the team went with the old school, tried and true traditional approach by playing through Jonas Valanciunas.
Valanciunas has both aced tests and has been asked to sit out most of some games recently. Green basically gave Valanciunas the night off in Indiana (7 minutes). The Lithuanian was well under his season averages against the Cleveland Cavaliers (15 minutes) and the Orlando Magic (18 minutes). The Pelicans lost all three of those games.
Going away from Valanciunas removes too much shot-altering size and possession-securing rebounding. They went back to their starting big man in Miami, which paid off in a big way. New Orleans won the rebounding (56-34) and the points in the paint (38-30) battles. Valanciunas had 10 boards and did not miss a shot (4-4).
Jose Alvarado gave Valanciunas credit after the victory.
“We had to work with what the game was giving us. That's what was happening and JV is a big-time player for us. He made (the offense) work…” Alvarado said. “Every game counts but this (win) builds confidence in guys that are role players, guys that have to step up in times like this. This will be big for us when the playoffs start.”
Green counters Spoelstra's small ball with Valanciunas
Miami under Erik Spoelstra prefers to chase shooters off the three-point line and funnel everything to the paint-patrolling Bam Adebayo. The Pelicans beat the Heat at their own game, per Green.
“That's what they do well. They pack the paint. They make you kick the ball,” Green shared. “We talked about it, watched it in film (study). We try to do the same. (The Pelicans) protect the paint, make sure we contest shots at a high rate. For us, it's about no matter what teams are doing, we're continuing to make simple plays, attacking the paint, and keeping the floor spread. After watching the Orlando tape, we felt like we could be better.”
Alvarado could not help but smile when asked about the emotions in Miami after a scuffle between the two teams in New Orleans.
“That's one thing we do the best…” Alvarado bragged. “It's time for that. I think Larry (Nance Jr.) said that a few games ago, it's time. With the environment and the circumstances between fourth and fifth, we're just trying to win every game that we can. When the time comes, we are ready for whatever.”
New Orleans is still in fifth place out West, with a real shot at overtaking the Los Angeles Clippers for home-court advantage in the first round. The Pelicans would not be in that position without Valanciunas.
Green is still exploring how some lineups can work before the NBA Playoffs begin. Everyone knows what to expect from Jonas Valanciunas, however. The consummate professional will not grumble about a lack of playing time. He'll just be ready to rumble whenever his name is called. The Pelicans played through him in Miami, and it paid off in a big way.
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