The Portland Trail Blazers look to regain their swagger versus the New Orleans Pelicans on the third game of a five-game road trip. The team rolls into the Crescent City, licking its wounds after dropping
two winnable games against the Miami Heat and Orlando Magic. This Pelicans team is banged up and trying to find an identity. The Blazers should be ready to pounce and notch their first win of the trip.
What You Need to Know
Portland Trail Blazers (5-5) vs. New Orleans Pelicans (2-8) – Wed. Nov. 12 – 5pm Pacific
How to watch via antenna or cable: See your options on the Rip City Television Network.
How to watch via streaming: BlazerVision in Oregon and Washington; League Pass everywhere else.
How to listen: Rip City Radio 620AM
Trail Blazers injuries: Scoot Henderson, Damian Lillard, Matisse Thybulle, Blake Wesley (Out)
Nuggets injuries: Dejounte Murray, Jordan Poole, Zion Williamson (Out)
What to Watch For:
New Look, Same Old Joe. The Blazers face a radically retooled Pelicans group that traded mainstay Brandon Ingram, fired David Griffin and hired Joe Dumars. In a series of head-scratching moves, reminiscent of the last two futile decades of his tenure as Pistons GM, Dumars traded CJ McCollum and Kelly Olynyk for Jordan Poole and Saddiq Bey. He drafted Jeremiah Fears and traded away an unprotected first-round pick to draft big man, Derik Queen. While Fears and Queen have showed early promise, veterans Zion Williamson, Trey Murphy III, and Herb Jones have shown inconsistent effort.
Inconsistent Play. After besting an undefeated Thunder team at home, Portland squandered two excellent opportunities in Florida. Yet, the Blazers enter this game with what appears to be one of the most resilient cultures in the league. The team has weathered scandal and gut-punching losses, but it continues to punch above its weight. Look for that grittiness to be on full display as Portland tries to get back on the winning track tonight.
Injuries Both sides will sit impactful players. Notably, Pelicans star, Zion Williamson, is nursing a hamstring strain. This is the fourth consecutive season he has lost time with a hamstring issue.
What Others Are Saying:
Wants it Both Ways After remaking the team, Dumars, a Louisiana native, decorated a wall of the Pelicans practice facility with the words “One Goal” and a giant picture of the Larry O’Brien trophy. Dumars tried to manage expectations differently with the press, telling Nola.com’s Rod Walker he expects changing the team’s culture to be a process. (subscription required)
“Before you can get to the playoffs or a certain amount of wins, the first thing you have to get to is, ‘We compete hard every night,’” Dumars said. “If you don’t establish that in your building first, you’re just talking. You’re just giving quotes out at that point. For me, it’s a process of establishing a hard, competitive playing team every night. Then we will get to the wins and losses.”
On the Hot Seat The Pelicans displayed neither championship caliber play, nor consistent effort at the jump. The team started the season 0-6. Coach Willie Green is a holdover from the Griffin regime, and as The Athletic’s William Guillory notes, there is widespread speculation that he will not last the season at the helm. (subscription required)
If the Pelicans keep playing with such inconsistent effort, their home fans will rain down a chorus of boos — and, in particular, on Green — which could prove tough for ownership to ignore. It might get ugly over the next week.
A Torrid Start
On the Blazers’ side of the court, Deni Advija is letting his play do the talking. In the season’s first ten games, he has averaged 25.5 points, 6.8 rebound and 4.9 assists per game. Kevin O’Connor and Tom Haberstroh are beginning the All-Star campaign.
Sharpe at Full Strength
Shaedon Sharpe unleashed 31 points on the Magic in what was easily his best game of the year. That was enough to net him the Blazer’s Edge Player of the Week. His troublesome left calf has healed, and Tiago Splitter told the media it’s a welcome development, The Oregonian’s Joe Freeman wrote.
“It’s the first game that I thought he was really himself,” Splitter told reporters. “Being aggressive, getting to the rim, getting to the free throw line. It looks better. His legs are under the shot, so hopefully we have Shae like this for a long time.”
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