After earning their first win of the regular season against the Denver Nuggets on Thursday, the New Orleans Pelicans couldn’t make it two wins in a row, losing on the road to the Oklahoma City Thunder 115-104 on Saturday. Here was the good, the bad and the Ball from the game.
The Good: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
The LA Clippers traded away Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the No. 11 pick in last year’s draft, in the blockbuster trade for Paul George in July. While the Clippers will surely be happy with their return once George is cleared to play, Gilgeous-Alexander has looked tremendous through the first five games of his sophomore season and Saturday was no exception.
In 35:30 against the Pelicans, SGA scored 23 points on an efficient 57.1 percent from the field to go along with 8 rebounds and 4 assists. Even with both Jrue Holiday and Lonzo Ball healthy, the Pelicans had no answer for him.
For the Pelicans, Jahlil Okafor was a standout once again, scoring 15 points, 12 rebounds and 2 blocks as Derrick Favors continues to deal with right knee soreness. Okafor dropped a career-high 26 points against the Nuggets on Thursday.
The Bad: Brandon Ingram’s injury
Brandon Ingram exited Saturday’s game with a head injury and did not return. Going into Saturday’s game, Ingram was averaging a team and career-high 26.8 points per game on 50 percent shooting from the field, including 50 percent from behind the arc. He scored 7 points in 13:10 against the Thunder.
His status is to be determined.
The Ball
For better or for worse, Lonzo Ball’s numbers are starting to level for the Pelicans. In 32:31 against the Thunder, Ball posted 10 points on a lowly 36.4 percent from the field, but he managed to finish with a team-high box plus-minus of +4 because of his playmaking (7 assists), effort on the board (8 rebounds) and defense.
Similar to Draymond Green, Ball’s value is hard to see by just looking at the box score, but unlike Green, Ball doesn’t have the talent around him to look elite. Hopefully that changes when Zion Williamson returns from injury.
