The Lakers completed the season sweep of the Pelicans on Sunday with a 122-114 victory led by a LeBron James triple-double despite a career-high 35 points from Zion Williamson.
The Good: The free throw shooting
Call it a favorable whistle. Call it attacking the basket. Whatever the reason, the Pelicans had a massive advantage at the free throw line, attempting 33 freebies to the Lakers’ eight. New Orleans took advantage of that, hitting 27 of those free throws to finish with an 81.8% percentage.
On a night when a lot of things were going in favor of the Pelicans, taking advantage of those areas was important and even if it didn’t result in a win, it is a positive to take away on the night.
Honorable mentions: Zion Williamson, Derrick Favors
The Bad: Bench scoring
Arguably the most inexcusable area the Pelicans struggled on the night was in bench scoring. Often an area of strength, New Orleans was completely outclassed as they were outscored 40-22 in points off the bench.
Granted, only four players played off the bench on Sunday and one of them, Frank Jackson, played less than six minutes. But if a team is tightening up its rotation, you need increased production and the Pelicans didn’t get that on Sunday.
Honorable mentions: Playoff race, Brandon Ingram, Defense on LeBron James
The Ball: Flirting with a triple-double
Aside from Zion Williamson, Lonzo Ball was the best Pelican on the night and one of the few to have an efficient game. He finished with 19 points, nine rebounds and nine assists with three steals. While he didn’t shoot well from three-point range, finishing 1-of-7, but shot 6-of-8 inside the arc in the loss.
