The New Orleans Pelicans (20-14) are off to one of the best starts in franchise history and Larry Nance Jr. is putting the league on alert.
It's a credit to both the team's depth and health, especially All-Stars Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram. Third-year head coach Willie Green is one Trey Murphy day-to-day injury from having a fully available roster for the first time since being hired.
There have been some setbacks but this year's locker room has handled adversity well. The team is on an 8-3 run since an embarrassing 44-point loss to the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA In-Season Tournament Semifinals, putting them on a path to possibly hit one very important franchise milestone.
Last season's Pelicans hit the 30-win mark on February 13th, which happens to be Mardi Gras Day in 2024. Former coach Alvin Gentry (2017-18) got to 30 wins on February 12th, this year's Lundi Gras. Using the 30-win mark before Mardi Gras is historically a great guidepost for measuring a team's postseason potential.
Pelicans' record-setting pace puts them on path toward playoffs
The earliest date the franchise has hit the 30-win mark was January 24th, 2011, when the team was known as the Hornets. This year's Pelicans have exactly 10 games left on the schedule before that record date. This includes a second night in a home-road back-to-back set matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves on January 3rd.
It's a good bet they drop at least one game and fall short of the record, but Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram can be proud of the situation. It's not one New Orleans basketball fans experience often.
A team led by Chris Paul, David West and Willie Green finished with 46 wins in that 2010-11 season. They got to Game 6 against the Los Angeles Lakers before being eliminated in the first round of the playoffs. The 2007-08 roster was one day behind (1/25/08) but it was their 42nd game; the 2010-11 lineup needed 46 to hit the milestone. A young Paul pushed the San Antonio Spurs to a Western Conference Semifinals Game 7 in the '08 playoffs, but Gregg Popovich's Big 3 of Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili was just too experienced.
Then-coach Monty Williams (2014-15) did not reach 30 wins until February 25th, his team promptly swept in the first round by Steph Curry's Golden State Warriors. Gentry's 2017-18 team swept the Portland Trail Blazers but stole just one game versus Curry, Kevin Durant and the juggernaut Warriors in the second round. At least they got there, though. If not for one Demarcus Cousins missed free throw, who knows how that team fares in the playoffs that postseason or parlays its experience in the future.
Back to the current Pelicans season, their January slate is the most challenging in the league. The next six weeks on the schedule are daunting enough without adding the extra pressure of chasing a made-up milestone. New Orleans only has six games versus opponents currently sporting a losing record. Two of those are road dates against the Memphis Grizzlies and Golden State Warriors. Williamson and Ingram will run out of the Smoothie King Center tunnel just five times between January 3rd and Mardi Gras.
Still, superstitious fans have to be hoping Williamson and Ingram's two-way talents can propel New Orleans to 30 wins before flipping the calendar to February. Every Pelicans team that hits 30 wins before February has won a playoff series. Getting there by Valentine's Day has historically meant at least a Play-In Tournament appearance, including last year's heartbreaking home loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
The Pelicans are currently 12-7 at home and 8-7 on the road. Sure, three recent heartbreaking home losses were by a combined five points. Green played too long not to know those types of losses get coaches fired, but the staff and players must share the blame for those defeats. However, if Green's squad can squeeze out 10 more wins before Mardi Gras day, it'd be hard to doubt the Pelicans' positive trajectory with the postseason looming.
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