This Thursday, the (18-9) New Orleans Pelicans will travel to Salt Lake City, UT to take on the (16-14) Utah Jazz. Tipoff will be at 9:00 PM EST inside the Vivint Arena. This will be the second time that these two teams have matched up this week, as the Jazz blew out the Pelicans 121-100 on Tuesday night.
The New Orleans Pelicans are coming into this one after falling to the Jazz. They were horrible on both ends of the court, as they will have to show up on the defensive end if they want to challenge the Jazz on the road.
The Utah Jazz is entering this matchup after dominating the Pelicans. They looked incredible on the offensive end of the court, as they shot 47.6% from the floor. Utah will have to stay hot in this one if they want to knock out the Pelicans in back-to-back games.
This game was written/published before last night's results.
The New Orleans Pelicans are currently tied for first place in the Western Conference standings, as they have the same record as the Grizzlies. They also have a 1.5-game lead over the third-place Denver Nuggets. On offense, they are scoring 117 points per game and they are shooting 48.5% from the field. This is the fifth most points scored per game and the sixth-highest team shooting percentage. According to dunkandthrees.com, the Pels have an adjusted offensive rating of 114.3, which is the eighth-highest rating in the NBA. Zion Williamson continues to lead the way on the offensive end, as he is scoring 25 points per game on 62% shooting from the floor. New Orleans has also shown that they have multiple players that can make it rain from deep. They are shooting 36% from behind the arc, which is the 13th-highest three-point shooting percentage in the league. Unfortunately, they have not been as solid at the free-throw line. They have only k nocked down 78.6% of their shots at the stripe, which is the 17th-lowest percentage in the NBA. They have to take advantage of these free looks at the hoop if they want to consistently win these games.
On the defensive end of the court, the Pelicans have also held their own. They are surrendering 111 points per game and they have held their opponents to 46.1% shooting from the field. This is the ninth least amount of points given up per game and the eighth-lowest shooting percentage allowed. According to dunksandthrees.com, the Pelicans have an adjusted defensive rating of 108.6, which is the third-lowest rating in the league. They have continued to contest shots near the rim and on the perimeter, as they aren't giving up many clean looks at the rim. New Orleans is only allowing their opponents to shoot 33.5% from deep, which is the third-lowest three-point shooting percentage given up in the league. They are also snatching 45.1 rebounds per game, which is the seventh most. They have to crash the defensive glass if they want to keep the Jazz from scoring second-chance points.
Injury Report: Brandon Ingram SF (Toe) and E.J. Liddell SF (Knee) are listed as out indefinitely.
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