With the second half of the schedule kicking off Thursday, the New Orleans Pelicans sit a dismal 11th in the Western Conference standings and the sweeping proportion of blame falls on the team’s porous defense — it’s on a historically bad pace.
Outside of the Kings this season (119.1) and the 2018-19 Cavaliers (116.8), the Pelicans defensive rating (116.3) is on track to go down as the third-worst mark in NBA history. Opponents have lit up New Orleans from beyond the arc as well as scored with great efficiency near the rim. It’s an untenable combination for a team wishing to keep playing past the regular season.