Two struggling and short-handed teams meet Friday night when the New Orleans Pelicans visit the Orlando Magic.
The Pelicans have lost three straight games, while the Magic have lost five straight as injuries have taken their toll.
The Pelicans are missing Dejounte Murray, CJ McCollum, Herbert Jones and Trey Murphy III, but they did get Zion Williamson (29 points) and Jordan Hawkins (seven) back Wednesday night. They utilized their seventh starting lineup in nine games and hung close to the undefeated Cleveland Cavaliers before losing 131-122.
“I loved the fight and competitiveness of our group,” Pelicans head coach Willie Green said. “Those guys, they step on the floor and give everything they’ve got. We just came up short. It will turn, but we’re going through a little bit of a storm early in the season. We’ve just got to continue to stay together. It’s a long year.”
New Orleans led for much of the first half, which ended tied 59-all. The Cavaliers surged ahead by outscoring the Pelicans 40-29 in the third quarter, though New Orleans did fight back in the fourth to within six points.
“I liked the energy we had (in the fourth quarter),” Williamson said. “But for us to win these tough games we can’t have any slippage in any quarter like we had in the third quarter. I can’t have four turnovers like that. I have to get my turnovers down.”
All five losses in the Magic’s streak came during a road trip that ended with a 118-111 loss to the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday. Orlando trailed by as many as 18 points in the first half before fighting back and coming up short.
“I thought we played good defense,” said Franz Wagner, who led the Magic with 28 points. “We switched it up a little bit with the zone. I think that got them out of their rhythm a little bit. From there, we played fast basketball — the way we want to play.
“Overall, it was a way better game than the last couple of games, but obviously we still have a lot to improve on.”
Orlando lost at Dallas 108-85 on Sunday and at Oklahoma City 102-86 on Monday. The game against the Pelicans will begin a five-game homestand.
All-Star Magic forward Paolo Banchero (oblique) is expected to miss a few more weeks, and center Wendell Carter Jr. (foot) missed the game at Indiana and is day-to-day.
Goga Bitadze has started the last two games in Carter’s place and had 10 points and 12 rebounds against the Pacers. Anthony Black came off the bench to score a season-high 12 points.
“(Black) was aggressive getting downhill, attacking the basket, finding the open man, and then defending the right way,” Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said. “That’s what we are asking of Anthony Black.”
Orlando has been plagued by slows starts, getting outscored by an average of 12.8 points in the first quarters of its last four losses.