Tyrese Maxey returned to the lineup and played a stellar game
The story about the New Orleans Pelicans this season is that they've largely been able to beat the teams they're supposed to beat but haven't really had a signature win against any of the powerhouse teams in their pursuit of the West's play-in spots. Until last night that is, when they stunned the Mavericks 110-97, turning a 6 point deficit in the first quarter to winning all of the remaining three quarters and emphatically stamping a signature win on their season record.
Tyrese Maxey returned to the lineup after a few games off with another injury and promptly exploded for 28 points, 7 assists, and 3 steals on 8/16 shooting, 7/13 from downtown. Right behind was Anfernee Simons with an 11/18 night for 27 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, and a steal. The third star was expected, too, Victor "Wemby" Wembayana putting up 12 points, 11 rebounds, and 2 blocks - all easily combining to top Zion Williamson's 39 points, 19 rebounds, 4 assists, and 5 blocks, as Williamson had absolutely no help to speak of. Lonzo Ball's 10 points and 15 assists were largely the result of a 7/8 showing from the charity stripe. In short, it was a dark, miserable game for Dallas. Only Williamson had a positive +/- (5) for the Mavericks.
And yet, the most exciting play might have come from New Orleans' first round pick, Olivier Maxence-Prosper. He held his own against one of the best players in the entire CSL, shooting 50% for his 8 points, 7 rebounds, 2 blocks, and 2 steals with 0 turnovers and a game-high +21 in 21 minutes due to foul trouble.
"Missing Jordan Nwora this game really hurt us," Mavericks head coach Monty Williams said after the game. "His bench scoring has been so vital to our success this season, and when you're playing a team with two powerhouse scoring guards like the Pelicans, you need that extra point-producer to support Zion. We lost this game because he's in the concussion protocol, and that's all there really is to it."
Asterisk aside, the stunning win moves New Orleans to 14-15, once again a single game back of both .500 and the play-in spot, with a vital game in San Antonio on tap next.
"The Spurs are a good team, and it's going to be a tough ask to beat them on their own court - especially after the emotions of a win like this," said a Pelicans team official. "They're on a four-game losing streak and we already lost to them in OT at their place earlier in the season. So they'll be spoiling for revenge."
In other news, teams continue to circle around Aaron Wiggins and A.J. Griffin on the trade front, but New Orleans seems disinclined to deal either one away at present - especially after the bench has been playing much better since the arrival of Donte DiVicenzo, who dropped 29 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals filling in for Maxey in a thrilling win over Golden State the last game out.
"We're not saying it won't happen," said the official. "But we don't have any interest in moving any of our first round picks, and we're equally protective of our max slot cap space this upcoming summer. So it has to be a move that makes sense not only for what we're doing now, but also keeps our future roadmap intact. If you look at all of our deals so far this year, they've been small additions that have upgraded on our on-court play without sacrificing future financial flexibility."
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