New Orleans Pelicans: Analyzing their second win of the season

The New Orleans Pelicans defeated the Sacramento Kings 114-106 Thursday night. DeMarcus Cousins had a monster game in his return to the team he played with for six and a half seasons.

The New Orleans Pelicans earned their second win of the season over the Sacramento Kings on a nationally televised game Thursday night. With Anthony Davis out with a sore knee, DeMarcus Cousins had a monster game, scoring 41 points, 23 rebounds and six assists for the Pelicans.

He was key for the Pelicans to regain the lead in the second half and secure their comeback win. There are still some common themes that will need to be addressed moving forward.

This team has a horrible habit of allowing teams to outscore them in the first half of the game. So far this season, the Pelicans are fourth in the league in first half opposition points. They allowing their opponents to score 57.4 points in the first half so far this early season.

That lack of defensive identity is what will put a nail in the coffin for the Pelicans’ season. The Sacramento Kings do have one of the best young benches in the league, but it gives no excuse for the Pelicans allowing 70 points in the first half.

Creating an identity on both ends

The key for the New Orleans Pelicans to solve that issue is to be engaged on the defensive end when the game officially starts. Outscoring your opponents is a silly strategy because most teams aren’t built that way.

The problem with the Pelicans, which was especially apparent in the Kings game, is that they have yet to establish an identity on the offensive end. You see some plays where Cousins gets the ball on the block and tries to force himself to the paint to get a foul. Or there are other sequences where some of the Pelicans shooters have to force shots if they can’t find Cousins open.

Inside presence

The most obvious solution moving forward is making DeMarcus Cousins a featured post-up player in the first quarter. With Anthony Davis out, the New Orleans Pelicans don’t have another big man who can create his shot to complement Cousins.

If Cousins is featured in the first few plays in the first quarter with post-up plays, it’ll force the opposition into early foul trouble. By the end of the Kings game, Cousins made 10 of his 12 free throw attempts. That number of attempts should be in that same vicinity every night until Anthony Davis is healthy enough to suit up.

If DeMarcus Cousins is getting the opposition into foul trouble early in the game with his post-ups, it will open up easy scoring opportunity for his teammates. It’s clear at this point that the New Orleans Pelicans stacked up with an array of talented shooters.

The acquisition of Jameer Nelson last weekend is paying dividends for the Pelicans, as he’s been the key reserve for this team. He did score 19 points, but it was how he was inserted in the starting unit (replacing Darius Miller) in the second half which was very interesting. That is definitely something to watch moving forward, especially against their next opponent, the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The New Orleans Pelicans will have their hands full against LeBron James and the Cavs. The key to stealing a win over the reigning Eastern Conference champs is to slow the pace of the game.

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Having DeMarcus Cousins post-up in the paint and getting to the free throw line will be critical to securing the win. He’s always going to get his numbers, but it’s how he gets them will be the deciding factor in the game.