The New Orleans Pelicans head into Oklahoma City on Monday night looking for anything that will bring their current 8-game losing streak to an end. Standing in their way now is the Thunder, winners of five straight and sitting atop the Western Conference at 42-9. OKC has been dominating opponents and is the favorite to represent the West in the NBA Finals, while the Pelicans are just trying to get a win.
Fresh off a 40-point performance against the Kings, Zion Williamson is doing everything he can, averaging 28.3 points during the skid. Alongside Trey Murphy III (26.3 ppg) and CJ McCollum (21.6), the Pelicans have offensive weapons, but the problem has been the most porous defense in franchise history. And, as bad as things have been, they’ve only gotten worse lately. New Orleans has been getting torched, giving up 126.4 points per game over their last ten outings. That’s a dangerous trend against an OKC squad that has averaged 124.7 points over that same span.
| Pelicans | Def. PPG | Def. Rtg | Net Rtg | Def. FG% | Opp Pts 2nd Chance |
| Last 10 games | 126.4 | 122.1 | -8.4 | 49.6 | 18.4 |
| Season | 118.8 | 118.3 | -8.6 | 48.5 | 16.0 |
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander remains the driving force behind Oklahoma City’s dominance, putting up MVP-level numbers at 32.7 points per game with six assists and nearly two steals. The Thunder takes great care of the ball (only 11.2 turnovers per game) and forces opponents into mistakes (NBA-best 11 steals per game). That’s bad news for the Pelicans, who have been turnover-prone all season. They’ve turned it over 42 times in two games against the Thunder this season.
History isn’t on the Pelicans’ side. The Thunder have owned this matchup, winning eight straight against New Orleans. Zion hasn’t faced OKC this season, missing both matchups, and the Pelicans have struggled to stay competitive in those games. During his career, Zion has averaged 24.6 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 5.0 assists against the Thunder.
For New Orleans to have a chance, they’ll need CJ McCollum and Murphy to stay hot from deep—both are hitting over three triples per game—but that’s easier said than done against an OKC defense that leads the NBA in opponent three-point percentage.
No matter what, the Pelicans will have to be at their best if they want to return home as winners before a back-to-back against the Sacramento Kings at the Smoothie King Center.
Most Recent Starting Lineups
| Oklahoma City Thunder | New Orleans Pelicans |
| G – Shai Gilgeous-Alexander | G – Jose Alvarado |
| G – Aaron Wiggins | G – CJ McCollum |
| F – Alex Caruso | F – Trey Murphy |
| F – Jalen Williams | F – Zion Williamson |
| C – Isaiah Hartenstein | C – Yves Missi |
Injuries
Oklahoma City Thunder: Ousmane Dieng (soleus), Isaiah Joe (knee), Ajay Mitchell (toe), Nikola Topic (knee) and Cason Wallace (shoulder) are OUT.
New Orleans Pelicans: Brandon Boston (ankle) is QUESTIONABLE. Bruce Brown (not with team), Herb Jones (right shoulder strain), Dejounte Murray (right Achilles rupture), and Kelly Olynyk (not with team) are OUT.
Who: New Orleans Pelicans (12-40) vs Oklahoma City Thunder (42-9)
Season Series:
- Nov. 13: Thunder def. Pelicans, 106-88
- Dec. 7: Thunder def. Pelicans, 119-109
- Feb. 10: Pelicans at Thunder
- Apr. 13: Pelicans vs. Thunder
Series History: The New Orleans Pelicans are 32-44 all-time against the Oklahoma City Thunder and have lost eight consecutive games to them.
Where: Paycom Center
When: Feb. 10, 7:00 PM CST
Where to watch: Gulf Coast Sports & Entertainment Network
Where to listen: WWL Radio 870 AM
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