The Pelicans will look to close out the 2020 calendar year with a victory over the Thunder, but they’ll have to bring the effort.
OKC is expected to start Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, George Hill, Luguentz Dort, Darius Bazley and Al Horford. In general the Thunder have surprised many by their good play, but this five-man group has proven rather formidable, posting a +14.4 net rating in 45 minutes.
For the sake of comparison, New Orleans starting lineup of Lonzo Ball, Eric Bledsoe, Brandon Ingram, Zion Williamson and Steven Adams have a +0.8 net rating through 54 minutes — the 111-86 loss against the Suns really hammered that statistic back down to earth.