New Orleans Pelicans: 5 keys to series vs. Blazers
5. Protect home court
The Trail Blazers have become one of the best teams on their home floor, finishing the regular season with a 28-13 record in Portland. In a city without another pro sports franchise, the people of Portland unconditionally pack into the Moda Center night after night, giving the Blazers one of the best home-court advantages in the NBA.
The Pelicans, being the sixth seed, don’t have home-court advantage, which means they’re going to have to win at least one game in Portland to give themselves a chance to win the series.
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When a team has to win on the road, it makes it all the more important they take care of business at home.
Finishing the season with a 24-17 record, New Orleans fared well at Smoothie King Arena, but with the Blazers’ dominance in Portland, losing a game on their own floor would put the Pelicans at a serious disadvantage.
The Trail Blazers don’t need to win on the road in order to make the second round. It would take the full seven games, but they could lose every game in New Orleans and still advance. The Pelicans, on the other hand, don’t have that luxury. They have to steal one in Portland.
Winning a game up in Portland is already a tough task. If New Orleans can’t take care of business at home, it’ll put itself in a tougher position by having to win multiple games in a place that has proved very difficult for most teams to even win once.