Once Upon A Time In Las Vegas – Divisional Round
This Sunday, the (26-20) New Orleans Pelicans will travel to Miami, FL to take on the (25-22) Miami Heat. Tipoff will be at 3:30 PM EST inside the Miami-Dade Arena. This will be the second time that these two teams have faced off this season, as the Heat won the first meeting 124-98.
The New Orleans Pelicans are coming into this one after falling to the Orlando Magic, 123-110. They struggled on both ends of the court, as they will have to be more efficient in this one if they want to challenge the Heat on the road.
The Miami Heat are coming into this game after falling to the Dallas Mavericks, 115-90. They were not good on the offensive end of the floor, as they will have to heat up from the field if they want to take care of business at home.
This game was written/published before last night's results.
The New Orleans Pelicans are in fourth place in the Western Conference standings, as they are seven games back from the Denver Nuggets. On offense, they are scoring 116.4 points per game and they have shot 48% from the floor. This is the ninth most points scored per contest and the ninth-highest team shooting percentage. According to dunksandthrees.com, the Pelicans have an adjusted offensive rating of 114.7, which is the 10th-highest rating in the NBA. CJ McCollum continues to lead the way on the offensive end of the court, as he is scoring 21.3 points per game on 43.5% shooting from the field. New Orleans has also shown that they have multiple players that can heat up from behind the arc. They are shooting 36.4% from behind the arc, which is the 12th-highest three-point shooting percentage in the league. Unfortunately, the Pels haven't consistently taken advantage of their trips to the charity stripe. They have only made 77.7% of thei r shots at the line, as this is the 20th-highest free-throw shooting percentage.
On the defensive end of the court, the Pelicans are surrendering 113.7 points per game and their opponents have shot 47.3% from the floor. This is the 16th least amount of points surrendered per game and the 15th-lowest shooting percentage allowed. According to dunksandthrees.com, the Pelicans have an adjusted defensive rating of 111.7, which is the seventh-lowest rating in the NBA. They have consistently contested shots near the rim and on the perimeter, as they have continued to close out on open jump shooters as well. They have only allowed their opponents to shoot 34.3% from the floor, which is the fifth-lowest three-point shooting percentage allowed. New Orleans is also grabbing 44.6 rebounds per game, as this is the eighth most in the NBA. They have to crash the offensive and defensive glass if they want to stay competitive in this game.
Injury Report: Naji Marshall PF (Toe) is questionable. Brandon Ingram SF (Toe), Zion Williamson PF (Hamstring), and E.J. Liddell SF (Knee) are out.
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