Who: New Orleans Pelicans vs. Indiana Pacers
When: Friday, Dec. 27, 7:00 p.m ET
Where: Smoothie King Center
How to watch: Fox Sports New Orleans
The New Orleans Pelicans ended their holiday road trip not only an unexpected 3-1 but having beaten a pair of Western Conference playoff teams to end the trip in Portland and Denver.
While the opponents don’t get any easier for the Pelicans on Friday, a return home could be the precursor to a season turnaround. The Pacers, one of the Eastern Conference’s elites, will visit the Smoothie King Center for the first meeting between the sides this season.
The duo of Malcolm Brogdon and Domantas Sabonis lead the surprisingly competitive Pacers with Victor Oladipo still yet to make his return from injury. The former averages 18.3 points per game while the latter is at 17.9 points per contest to go with 13.5 rebounds per night.
Together, they’ve formed one of the more deadly pick and roll combinations in the league, leading to their 21-10 record and 11th spot in net rating this season. That net rating is also buoyed by a defense that comes in sixth in the league in defensive rating, allowing just 104.4 points per 100 possessions.