Stan Van Gundy spent part of Sunday’s postgame press conference in Cleveland discussing the need for New Orleans and its two recent All-Star forwards to bring more intensity and focus on defense. In Monday’s win over Sacramento, Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram did their usual major damage scoring-wise, but the Pelicans also delivered at the other end of the floor, particularly in the opening 24 minutes.
New Orleans held Sacramento to just 46 first-half points and built a 26-point lead, then withstood a Kings rally in the second half. It was the Pelicans’ third straight triumph, as they continue to gain ground on teams just ahead of them in the Western Conference standings.