Pelicans Spank Minnesota For 4th Straight Win Behind AD’s 45

The New Orleans Pelicans are riding a wave of energy and intensity. After a decisive blowout against the Hawks, they have won their 4th straight game in a row last night against the desperate Minnesota Timberwolves.

On Monday night at Atlanta, the Pelicans blew out the Hawks despite getting less than 20 minutes from their superstar player. After the leaving in the first quarter, AD had to trust his teammates to protect and build on their early lead.

Frazier had 21-14-5, Jones had 17-6, and the team as a whole shot 52-44-91 from the floor. For the first time in months, AD’s supporting cast stepped up and won a game largely without his help. I wrote about the potential of the Pelicans if AD were to go off along with his teammates.

Last night at home inside the SKC showcased exactly what that could look like.

AD dropped a ridiculous 45-10-3-2-1 on 17-27 from the floor and 2/4 from deep, but his teammates contributed as well.

Terrance Jones’ consistency shined with another 17-7 game. Langston Galloway shot 3/5 from deep and played great perimeter defense. Omer Asik had 9 boards and a few surprising put-backs. Tim Frazier dropped 11-8, E’Twuan Moore had 12, and Solomon Hill had an awesome transition dunk.

This team is coming together as a cohesive unit. Anthony Davis is the clear superstar, but he’s starting to trust his teammates enough to win consistently.

When opposing teams try to double and triple team him, the ball moves quickly to Moore or Galloway on the perimeter. When Davis grabs a board in transition, Jones is sprinting down the floor to lay it in before he crosses half court.

The Pelicans defense has been great as well. Even Hill, who has probably been the most disappointing signing so far has proven to at the very least be a reliable stopper.

The Pelicans held the Wolves to just 38% from the floor and an abysmal 17% from deep. The only player on the team who is actually bad on the defensive end is Hield, which is understandable given this is the first month of his career.

Everyone else is clicking on defense and playing to the best of their individual abilities.

Nov 23, 2016

Davis made Timberwolves power forward / center Karl-Anthony Towns look silly last night in a battle of opposing young NBA superstars.

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In addition to dropping 45 points on the offensive end, he held Towns to just 9 points on 4/11 shooting and had him looking visibly shaken.

Had it not been for Zach Lavine, who dropped 26 points on 9/22 shooting, the Wolves might have lost this game by 30 or 40 points. Andrew Wiggins couldn’t find his shot, Ricky Rubio went 0/2, and no other starter had a positive +/- rating.

During the game, the Pelicans showed a mini-interview with Anthony Davis where he was asked about his disappointing ’15-’16 season. They asked whether not being an All-Star starter and failing to make an All-NBA team were motivating him this year. Davis paused, candidly responding that losing 20+ million dollars was also a reason for motivation.

Regardless, Pelicans fans should rejoice at the fact that AD might be the best player in the NBA this year in the 2016-2017 NBA season.

The Pelicans are poised to re-enter the early season playoff race after climbing from 1-9 to 6-10. Though they are currently the 11th seed, though they have just two less wins than the 6th seeded OKC Thunder, who have lost their last two games.

AD will get serious MVP consideration if they can manage anything from the 5th-7th seed.

The Pelicans will fill their bellies with Turkey today and tonight before hopping a flight out West and challenging the Portland Trailblazers tomorrow night at the CSNW Moda Center in Portland, Oregon.

If AD and his supporting cast can keep up this current level of play, the Blazers don’t stand a chance……