For the second time inside the NBA’s bubble, the Pelicans watched an opponent sizzle the nets. And for the second time inside the bubble, their postseason hopes have been pushed to the edge.
Sacramento flew out of the gates with 49 first-quarter points against the Pelicans on Thursday afternoon as they picked up their first win inside the bubble while delivering a potentially fatal blow to New Orleans’ playoff hopes in the process with a 140-125 win.
“They shot the ball extremely well,” head coach Alvin Gentry said. “We were never into them, though. That was the tough thing that we never really got into them and to give up a 50-point quarter, your defense has to adjust and do something. I thought we played great defense in the second quarter and did a good job of getting ourselves back in the game.
“But then the third quarter comes around, the fourth quarter comes around and we really didn’t guard. We weren’t into the ball. They drove the ball to the basket. (It was) not so much of the three-pointers in the second half as it was driving to the basket and getting in our paint.”
The first quarter set the tone for the day as the Kings shot 78.3% from the field and saw Bogdan Bogdanovic go 7-of-8 from the field and 5-of-6 from three for 19 points. It negated what was a strong offensive start for the Pelicans as they shot 70.8% from the field and scored 39 points.
It was the second time inside the bubble the Pelicans have been torched in the first quarter along with the blowout loss to the Clippers.
“I don’t know that we were flat as much as we’ve played two teams that shot the heck out of the ball,” Gentry said. “We have to be into the ball more. I don’t think it’s that we don’t care. I think our guys really care and understand the sense of urgency that we’re in right now. We put (Sacramento) at a comfortable level and…we let them have too many catch-and-shoot situations and we let them get comfortable.”
Unlike the aforementioned game against Los Angeles, the Pelicans fought back in the second period. The lead was trimmed down to three points following a Josh Hart lay-up at the 6:13 mark but Sacramento never allowed New Orleans to get closer, leading 78-70 at the half.
The deficit again closed to three points in the middle of the third quarter after a three-point play from Jrue Holiday but, again, the Kings responded as the lead ballooned to 117-103 by the end of the third.
“I think they came out blazing,” Holiday said. “I don’t think it was a lack of effort. I’ll have to go back and watch it and at that point kind of figure it out but, man, they were knocking down shots and making some plays. They were making some tough shots at first. We stayed in it for a little bit but it got out of hand.”
There would be no Pelicans run in the fourth as the Kings continued their offensive onslaught, finishing the day shooting 53.8% from the field and 48.5% from beyond the arc. Bogdanovic finished with a career-high 35 points while De’Aaron Fox added 30 and Harrison Barnes 22.
“I don’t think it’s not that we’re not playing hard,” Gentry said. “We’re just not into the ball defensively. I think we’re trying to compete and doing some things but you just can’t give up a 49-point quarter and you can’t give up a 40-point quarter in the third quarter. Our defense has to be better from the standpoint of following gameplans and then just the overall effort. We just have to be into the ball a lot more and be much more active defensively.”
New Orleans’ startlingly bad defensive showing overshadowed their finest offensive performance in the bubble. The team shot 57.3% from the field, connected on 14 of their 34 long-range attempts and saw Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram each pour in 24 points.
But the Pelicans’ playoff hopes flew further and further away with each long-range make from the Kings. Thursday marked the 28th time this season the Pelicans have allowed 120 or more points. They are now 3-25 in those games.
“I think just lock in, take pride,” Holiday said of what has to change defensively. “Sometimes that might be hard because you’re just putting all of your effort on defense and leaving it out there and then offensively, shots aren’t falling and plays that we usually make we aren’t making. But just have to lock in. This game is hard and it’s tough to play but you have to do it.”
It was a particularly surprising and disappointing performance from the Pelicans as they had, largely through little work of their own, moved into the middle of the race for the ninth seed. A win on Thursday paired with a Portland loss later in the day would have moved them to within percentage points of ninth. Instead, the Pelicans could be two games out of the ninth seed by day’s end as their playoff hopes are quickly sliding away.
For better or worse, the Pelicans will have little time to think about the loss as they are back in action on Friday against Washington, the team with the worst record in the bubble.
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