Pelicans come up golden in win over Nuggets

The scene was set.

Denver was playing its first home game on Christmas in 25 years. The Nuggets were riding high, on a seven-game win streak. They were hell bent for revenge on a Heavenly day. It was a clear, concise script.

The Pelicans saw the script, tore it up and wrote their own screenplay.

Back on Halloween Night in New Orleans, the Pelicans provided their fans with a rare treat, tricking the highly-touted Denver Nuggets 122-107 at Smoothie King Center as New Orleans outscored Denver 66-55 in the second half.

It took the best games of Jahlil Okafor and Frank Jackson as Pelicans to get the job done.

Okafor had 26 points while Jackson finished with 21. Brandon Ingram was his usual, reliable self with 25 points.

After the loss, Denver coach Mike Malone called out his team for an “embarrassing” effort.

After all, it came against an 0-4 New Orleans squad which had given up an average of 128.3 points per game in those four losses, defending no one.

After that, the Nuggets got their act in gear again, winning four straight games and 10 of 11.

Malone earned a contract extension, getting an early Christmas present on Christmas Eve as he was extended through the 2022-23 season.

Despite the extension, the Nuggets failed to extend their win streak Wednesday night.

That streak once again came to an end against lowly New Orleans.

The Pelicans overcame nine turnovers in the first quarter to still lead 29-26. That was an indication of what was to follow. Were it not for turnovers, the Pelicans would have blown out the Nuggets. Denver scored 27 points off of 19 New Orleans turnovers.

While the Pelicans have failed consistently, continuously in the fourth quarter this season, New Orleans came through again against Denver when it counted most, outscoring the Nuggets 28-20 in the final frame in a 112-100 victory.

Most impressive was the “20” part of that equation.

Suddenly, New Orleans is defending better. New Orleans is rebounding better.

The Pelicans held the Nuggets to just 40 percent shooting from the field and out-rebounded the Nuggets 52-40, simply outworking them.

Ingram had 31 points and seven rebounds, connecting on 11-of-18 field goal attempts. Ingram scored off the dribble at the rim, in the mid-range game and from 3-point land, showing once again that he has become a complete scorer and more of a complete player.
He was an outstanding acquisition from the Lakers.

Josh Hart came through with 16 points off the bench and he continues to show well, another piece in the trade with Los Angeles.

The third wheel in that deal, Lonzo Ball, struggled mightily in the first half, as he has on several occasions this year, drawing my ire.

To his credit, Ball picked things up in the second half, even making a pair of 3-pointers and finished with 10 points, nine rebounds and three assists. While he has not been the lead guard, directing this team as visualized, he does have ability, though he must prove that more consistently now that he is getting starts.

It is clear that New Orleans is simply a much better team with Derrick Favors, who scored eight points but had 13 rebounds and a career-best eight assists and defended very well.

Jrue Holiday did his job with 20 points, eight assists, six steals and four rebounds, stuffing the stat sheet.

J.J. Redick had 15 points, doing his job. He caught fire in the second quarter with 13 points and moved into 16th all-time in NBA history in made 3-pointers.

The veteran trio of Favors, Holiday and Redick are true professionals. They bring it on a nightly basis, providing a good example to an otherwise youthful roster.

The question lingers.

How many of those three will still be here at season’s end?

This time, Malone did not go the “embarrassing” route.

Instead, he went for the bully story.

“We got bullied on the boards,” Malone said.

Malone was a top assistant with the New Orleans Hornets under Monty Williams in the 2010-11 season when New Orleans improved dramatically defensively. Malone has always stressed playing on that end of the floor.

That has been largely absent in New Orleans this season but it was prevalent Wednesday night.

In fact, it has been prevalent in four straight games and Favors is a big part of it.

In their last four games, New Orleans has allowed an average of just 99.8 points per game. Coincidentally, the Pelicans have won three of those four games.

While we wait for the debut of Zion Williamson, who said prior to Wednesday night’s game that if it were his decision, he would have played already, we watch as Favors plays, the Pelicans improve and the tanking dream is tanking.

Zion says he is trusting the organization to make the right decision about him while trying to change his approach to walking and running. Clearly, there is concern about the long-term health of the talented young player.

The cautious approach is the correct approach with such a dynamic talent and the future of the franchise.

While the future is what Pelicans fans have to look forward to in what appears to be a lost season in terms of playoff aspirations and championship contention, the present is suddenly a brighter picture, thanks to a bright effort on a day were many saw the world as “all is bright.”

Now, if that defensive intensity can continue. Now, if New Orleans can keep Favors and key players on the floor. Now, if only New Orleans could face Denver more often.