13th February - New Orleans Pelicans vs Oklahoma City Thunder - 23-31
So here it is; the last game before all-star break. We've won 3 in a row (Bulls, Indiana, Blazers) which is very nice, and we have a chance to get even closer to .500 tonight. Before I break down any of the numbers, here's the injury report:
Brandon Ingram (Right Ankle Sprain) is questionable for Thursday's vs OKC
— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) February 12, 2020
Story: https://t.co/UnX3cP0CTv#Pelicans | @MorrisBartLLC pic.twitter.com/UKz15Y0fTZ
Nothing really new; Ingram still questionable. To be honest, I'm tempted to just say sit him: it's the last game before a big long break, if there's any real issue at all, let him start his break early. No need to pressure him in if he's still feeling it. Of course, if he's okay to go, then play him, but don't try and rush anything.
As for this game; Oklahoma City Thunder. They are 32-22, behind yet another fantastic year from all-time great Hall of Famer, Chris Paul. They have gone 17-8 since Christmas. They are only 0.5 games behind Dallas for the 6th seed, which means they could very easily make 6th before the year is out.
OKC has a good offense, 14th in the NBA, and a solid defense (12th) but neither are spectacular. They're a slow team, 23rd in pace. They're 7th in FG% and 4th in FT%, but are pretty mediocre from long range at only 12th. They're bottom 5 in assists, and bottom 10 in rebounds and steals. Part of this is due to pace, of course, but it still represents a problem for them worth taking advantage of, especially when we are such a dominant offensive rebounding team. OKC doesn't beat itself though; they don't turn it over or foul much, falling in the bottom 10 in the league in both stats.
Other players have been good for them (SGA, for example) but the real story is Chris Paul. Averaging 17.5/5/7 in 32 minutes a game, CP3 still has it. What's more, he's been relatively healthy, having played 53 games this year; they've only played 54.
He's shooting ridiculously well from all over; 60.8% TS overall, but that includes a truly stupid 84% at the rim, 52% from the paint, 53% from the short midrange, and 53% from the long midrange too. It's worth noting that only 6% of his FGAs are at-rim attempts, so that 84% efficiency is on extremely low sample size, but still; impressive.
Only 14% of his makes are assisted. He's just self-creating tons and tons of stupidly efficient offense, all the while playmaking for everyone else; he's a +8.2 on/off. Plus, somehow he's still an excellent defender. This is a 34 year old point guard who is barely 6'0 tall, people. What he's doing this year is all-NBA, undoubtedly. He's still top 20 in PIPM, just for added benefit.
That's the run-down, really. We don't necessarily need this one, I wouldn't call it a must win, but it would be great for momentum's sake if we could clean up with a victory tonight before heading into all-star break. 24-31 incoming?
#WBD
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Originally Posted by Spec3333
