The New Orleans Pelicans continued their strong play inside the bubble with another strong outing against the Denver Nuggets on Saturday. With the Nuggets still sporting a starting lineup without a guard, the Pelicans took full advantage and dominated from start to finish to earn a 119-104 win.
The Good: The starters
For the second game in a row, the starting unit looked impressive in limited minutes. No starter played more than Jrue Holiday’s 13 minutes and none of the starting five, which featured JJ Redick in for Brandon Ingram who was out for the night, played in the second half.
The Pelicans were up 33-20 after one and had a 22-6 run in the first half against the undermanned Nuggets as they continue to ramp things up ahead of Thursday’s first official game.
Honorable mentions: The bench, Jaxson Hayes dunking, Nickeil Alexander-Walker.
The Bad: No real test
For as much as the starters dominated, it was more a matter of circumstance than anything. Holiday, who was being guarded by Mason Plumlee on the night, repeatedly took his man off the dribble. New Orleans’ three guard lineup left the Nuggets, who still had no guards available, completely out of their element.
While it’s nobody’s fault that the Nuggets have battled injuries, it marks the second consecutive game where the Pelicans weren’t really tested due to circumstances they couldn’t control. Fortunately, the final scrimmage game against the Milwaukee Bucks should provide a worthwhile battle.
Honoroable mentions: The loooooooong second half
The Ball: Limited action
After playing the most minutes of any starter in the first scrimmage, Ball played just 12 minutes and had three points, three rebounds and two assists. His only made basket was a corner three-pointer over Bol Bol, who was matched up against him in his limited minutes.
