NEW ORLEANS – It’s been a while since the New Orleans Pelicans gave their fans something to cheer about following Opening Night at the Smoothie King Center. The Pels haven’t won their home opener since the 2020-21 season (98-95 over San Antonio), and have dropped three of four since 2019.
They’ll get their chance to reverse that trend tonight when they host the New York Knicks. The Knicks are on the second night of a back-to-back, coming off a 126-120 win in Atlanta on Friday.
However, they do present a number of challenges for the Pelicans, as evidence by New York’s 4-2 record against the Pelicans over the past three seasons.
New Orleans’ debut performance gave fans plenty to be encouraged by after a lackluster preseason. The big three of Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram, and CJ McCollum combined for 66 points, with each finding their time to shine within the parameters of the Pelicans’ new offense.
They were solid on the defensive end as well, especially in the second and third quarters as they took charge of the game.
New Orleans got good contributions from its bench and Zion Williamson was a closer down the stretch. All in all, it was everything fans wanted to see in game one.
Home court hasn’t always been an advantage for the Pelicans, but last season New Orleans went 27-14 at “The Blender.” Championship-caliber teams typically top 30 wins at home, and every single victory is going to be needed this season in the stacked Western Conference.
Keys to Victory
- Continue to defend the three-pointer. The Pelicans did an outstanding job against the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday night, limiting the Grizz to 27.9 percent shooting from beyond the arc. The Knicks are a volume three-point shooting team, averaging 42.5 attempts over their first two games, and they’re making them at an impressive 44.7% clip.
- Take care of the basketball. New Orleans had 20 turnovers against Memphis, with 15 coming from the starters. The Knicks have not done a great job forcing turnovers so far (13.5 per game), and the Pelicans can’t help them out tonight by giving up 28 points off of miscues as they did on Wednesday night.
- Watch those fouls. New York has gotten to the line 54 times in two games. The Pelicans took 22 free throws against Memphis. While neither team shoots the lights out at the stripe, whoever gets there more often could be a big indicator of which team is the aggressor.
- Win points in the paint and limit second chance opportunites. The Pelicans have been notoriously bad at stopping second chance points, and we saw more of the same in the season opener. Meanwhile, the Knicks have been elite at closing possessions, giving up five fewer second chance points in two games (18) than the Pels did in one (23).
- Remain balanced offensively. One of the most exciting things about the win over Memphis was that all five starters were able to score in double figures and do so fairly effeciently. With a defensive strategist like Tom Thibodeau on the other sideline, New Orleans will have to make sure they continue to move the basketball with purpose and seek out advantages on the floor.
- Slow down RJ Barrett. Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle are the All-Stars, but RJ Barrett has absolutely torched the Pelicans when he’s faced them. With Herb Jones taking on Brunson, and Williamson guarding Randle, Brandon Ingram is going to have to show that he’s the better Duke small forward tonight.
Probable Starting Lineups
| New York Knicks (vs NOP last season) | New Orleans Pelicans (vs NYK last season) |
| G – Jalen Brunson (20.0 pts, 42.9 3P%) | G – CJ McCollum (18.0 pts, 27.8 3P%) |
| G – Quentin Grimes (11.5 pts, 43.8 3P%) | G – Herbert Jones (10.5 pts, 1.5 blk) |
| F – RJ Barrett (26.5 pts, 6.5 ast) | F – Brandon Ingram (18.5 pts, 35.1 FG%) |
| F – Julius Randle (28.0 pts, 7.0 reb) | F – Zion Williamson (N/A) |
| C – Mitchell Robinson (11.0 pts, 13.0 reb) | C – Jonas Valanciunas (10.0 pts, 11.0 reb) |
Inactives
New Orleans Pelicans: Jose Alvarado (right ankle sprain), Naji Marshall (right knee contusion), Trey Murphy III (left knee partial meniscectomy)
New York Knicks: N/A
Who: New York Knicks (1-1) vs New Orleans Pelicans (1-0)
Series history: Pelicans lead all-time 22-21, 1-1 in 2022-23
Where: Smoothie King Center
When: October 25, 6:00 PM CT
Where to watch: Bally Sports New Orleans, NBA TV
Where to listen: WRNO 99.5
READ MORE
- Brandon Ingram: Can He Elevate From All-Star to All-NBA?
- Matt Ryan: Great Story of Perseverance Now Also Pelicans’ 3-point Back-up Plan
- A Lot On Herb: Jones Remains Keystone of Pelicans Defense
- Zion, Pelicans Save Their Best For Last and Beat Magic 104-92
- Dyson Daniels Needed For More Than Defense In Year 2
- Pelicans Look To Unlock Dynamic Offensive Potential Of Dereon Seabron
- Making a Difference: How Larry Nance Jr. Elevates the Pelicans’ Second Unit
- New Orleans Pelicans Better Positioned to Handle Adversity
- EJ Liddell’s Defensive Prowess: How He Could Augment the Pelicans’ Defense
- Can Jordan Hawkins Be A Real Shooting Option Off the Bench in 2023-24?
- How James Borrego Could Boost Pelicans’ Offense
BI is the difference so far
Anytime you hold another NBA team to 12 points in a quarter, that is strong even if they have played on 5 consecutive nights.
I can’t believe I am saying this, but this team is playing at a high basketball IQ level.
Jonas has been a complete zephyr on the court tonight…
Please stay healthy Zion
Pathetic 3rd quarter would have been a lot worse if not for Zion
Can someone please teach JV how to set a screen?
Love the way Hawkins and Ryan play
More consistent effort on both ends of the court than I can remember from last year
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