Davis-less Pelicans Can’t Handle Hawks, Lose 106-98

The Pelicans (1-7) have played each game this season shorthanded, but tonight against the Hawks (8-2) they were even more so than usual.

Anthony Davis left last night’s win against the Dallas Mavericks with a hip contusion, and sat out tonight’s game as a result. The injury is not too serious though, and he should be back on the court sooner rather than later.

Despite missing Davis and playing on a second game of a back to back, the Pels put up one heck of a fight before eventually losing 106-98.

They were able to get out to a double digit lead in the first half thanks to some red hot shooting from behind the arc. The Pels knocked down 11-18 shots from three in the half, with nearly every perimeter player chipping in at least one make.

Toney Douglas came off the bench in the second quarter, quickly knocked down two triples, and had a third waved off because he stepped out of bounds. He finished the night with 12 points and shot 3-7 from deep after scoring 17 points on only 8 shots last night.

Douglas plays hard on both ends whenever he is out on the court, and has performed admirably as Smith’s backup since joining the roster.

Douglas was not the only Pelican to step out of bounds tonight. It happened on multiple occasions to multiple players, and it is those kinds of bonehead plays that cannot happen if a team hopes to pull out an upset victory. Nineteen turnovers will always be too many, so everyone on the roster needs to clean things up a bit if they hope to get back to winning games.

Eric Gordon put together another strong game, scoring 26 points on 10-20 shooting. He is averaging a hair under 19 points per game, a total he has not approached since his last year on the Los Angeles Clippers.

Jan 18, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; New Orleans Pelicans guard Eric Gordon (10) reacts after a missed shot against the Toronto Raptors at Air Canada Centre. The Pelicans beat the Raptors 95-93. Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports

Not only is he knocking down his jumpers, but he is showing athleticism in cutting to the basket that simply has not been there since arriving in New Orleans. At one point he was able to turn a one on two fast break off of a steal into a basket: a simple yet difficult play that only the league’s best are able to execute consistently. If he keeps this kind of performance and production up, fans will finally understand why Gordon was such a coveted asset in the Chris Paul trade.

Perhaps the most encouraging takeaway from tonight’s game was Omer Asik playing 21 solid minutes. After playing only 10 minutes against the Warriors on Halloween, the Pels’ big man did not take the court again until last night. It seemed unlikely that playing in back to back games would be on the table so soon, but he came out tonight and delivered a solid effort.

He continues to battle down low for rebounds, and provides the Pelicans with a presence they simply have not had to start the season. Coming into tonight they ranked 28th in rebounding, a number sure to increase as Asik eases back into his role.

Al Horford was red hot for Atlanta tonight, scoring 20 of his 26 points in the first half. He was uber-efficient from the field as well, shooting 11-15 from the field and 4-6 from three. Yes, Anthony Davis was not the only big man working on his three point shot this off-season. Horford has always been one of the most versatile big men in the league when healthy, and he showed why tonight.

As if Horford was not enough to deal with, Paul Millsap put together another solid outing, collecting 16 boards to go along with 19 points. Point guard Jeff Teague put together a double double of his own with 14 points and 10 assists.

The Pelicans stayed in this game a lot longer than most thought, keeping it close until Atlanta pulled away towards the end of the fourth quarter. They will try to earn their second win of the season on Friday night against the Toronto Raptors….