On New Year's Eve, the New Orleans Pelicans won against the Los Angeles Lakers, 129-109. In the one-sided blowout, the Lakers struggled to keep up with the Pelicans throughout the outing, despite LeBron James' 34-point game. James in particular was on the wrong end of Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado's antics during the game.

Alvarado, known best for his sneaky come-from-behind steals, managed to use his signature defensive move twice and force James to commit two of his four turnovers that night. (via SportsCenter)

After the game, it seemed that New Orleans wasn't done letting James hear about his pockets getting picked. Pelicans big man Larry Nance Jr. in particular, posted a hilarious photoshopped picture of Alvarado on X.

The picture has a cropped face of Alvarado on the cover of Thief, a video game released back in 2014. Nance Jr. captioned the post ā€œGame recapā€ ā€” a reminder of Jose Alvarado's defensive thievery throughout the night.

The New Orleans Pelicans end their year with a bang

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Aside from Alvarado being a thorn in the side of the Lakers, the purple and gold struggled to contain Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson, who both finished the night with 26 points each. CJ McCollum also added damage, providing 22 points for the Pelicans.

Nance Jr. himself finished with a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds off the bench. All 10 players in the game for the Pelicans were able to score in the blowout win.

As for the Lakers, Anthony Davis and Austin Reaves provided 20 points apiece in support of LeBron, but still, it was far from enough to match the Pelicans. New Orleans finished its 2023 on a high note and will go against the Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday to cap off a five-game homestand.