Fresh off their loss to the Lakers on Thursday, the Clippers let out their frustrations on the Pelicans on Saturday, blowing out New Orleans from the get-go to win by a final of 126-103.
The Good: Uhhhhhh
By basically every count for the Pelicans, Saturday’s game was terrible. For the second straight game, New Orleans came out slow and fell behind by double digits. In Thursday’s game against Utah, the Pelicans were able to fight back into the game. On Saturday, the Clippers just blew the game wide open.
Only three regular rotation members for the Pelicans finished in double figures in scoring: Brandon Ingram with 14, Derrick Favors with 12 and JJ Redick with 11. The team finished with 18 turnovers after tallying 21 against Utah. Just an all-around horrible outing.
Honorable mentions: Paul George
The Bad: First half
It’s hard to put into words just how abysmal the first half was for the Pelicans. Of course, the Clippers hit shots at a nearly historic rate. Their 16 three-pointers in the opening two quarters were just one shy of an NBA record for one half. But the Pelicans weren’t simply helpless passengers in that half.
A number of things went wrong in those opening two frames. The Clippers consistently turned live-ball turnovers into points, finishing with 34 points off turnovers, as the Pelicans again struggled with giving the ball away for the second straight contest. As a team, the Pelicans also made just 16 field goals in the first half, matching Los Angeles’ three-point output.
But by the end of a half, multiple players weren’t getting back on defense which is as damning as any scoreline. It was a perfect storm of events that may have culminated in sending the Pelicans crashing out of the bubble.
Honorable mentions: Everything
The Ball: Actually giving a damn
Statistically, Ball had a better night than in the opener, shooting 2-of-6 from the field with both of his makes coming beyond the arc. He finished with seven points while adding six rebounds and three assists.
But putting the raw numbers aside, Ball appeared to be one of the few players who actually cared, particularly late in the first half. He wasn’t innocent in the Pelicans’ demise, committing three turnovers on the night, but he never stopped hustling back on defense.
In the end, it had no effect on the final score. But it was one of the few positives on a night the Pelicans will want to quickly forget.
