By Preston Ellis (@PrestonEllis)

The New Orleans Pelicans looked every bit the part of Western Conference contender through four games, with the obliteration of Houston and Sacramento, respectively, and culminated with an electric 4-0 start.

However, expectations came crashing down to earth as the injury bug took a bite out of Elfrid Payton and Nikola Mirotic’s ankles, Darius Miller’s quad, Julius Randle’s foot (plantar fasciitis), and Anthony Davis’ shoulder. Doubt quickly reared his ugly head as the Pelicans fell down a six-game hole, five of which came on a crucial five-game Western Conference road trip.

Cautious optimism grew as the Pelicans dispatched Chicago and Phoenix, but with their carefully engineered destruction of the Toronto Raptors, the Pelicans are back to their 2017-18 swagger.

 

“This was a big statement game for us.”@3DTV catches up with Anthony Davis (25 PTS, 20 REB) after the @PelicansNBA‘s big win in Toronto!#PlayersOnly pic.twitter.com/0zItJ9HAC8

— NBA TV (@NBATV) November 13, 2018

Anthony Davis typically carries the flag as most impressive Pelican in headlines, but the crushing defeat was an all-around team effort. It was E’Twaun Moore’s 30 points on 13/18 shooting, Jrue Holiday’s 29 points, 14 assists and one turnover on 12/19, Julius Randle’s 17 points, 12 rebounds on 7/11, and Wes Johnson’s defense of Kawhi Leonard who was held to 20 points on 7/20 shooting for the night.

The Pelicans throttled the Raptors from the opening tip, limiting the NBA’s fourth-best rated offense to 40 percent shooting, 42 points in the paint, and 28 percent from three-point range. This wasn’t a team that missed open looks, this was a team that never got them.

 

BIG CLAMPS RT @RyanJatho: AGAIN, JRUE HOLIDAY DOES NOT CARE WHO YOUR BEST PLAYER IS #lockdown pic.twitter.com/8SAJl3k2k4

— ???? (@whoadiebrees) November 13, 2018

Above you’ll see highlights of Jrue Holiday’s suffocating defense of superstar, Kawhi Leonard. What you won’t see is any highlight of Kyle Lowry, whose soul Jrue Holiday quite simply swallowed. Lowry’s first bucket came with 3:40 remaining in the fourth quarter, and the early season MVP candidate was more than a non-factor. He was rendered invisible.

Jrue Holiday played the role of facilitator brilliantly, he nearly led the Pelicans in scoring, and he eviscerated the Raptors’ two best players. It’s about time Jrue Holiday enters the conversation for the NBA All-Star game, and not too early to peg him as a Defensive Player of the Year candidate.

Jrue Holiday putting Zach LaVine in Alcatraz. pic.twitter.com/q4TXpAENEJ

— Scott Charlton (@Scott_Charlton) November 8, 2018

“Seven of the top 20 scorers currently in the league — including DeMar DeRozan, Paul George and Russell Westbrook — have combined to shoot a paltry 31.8 percent from the field!” – Oleh Kosel of The Bird Writes

In their last two games, Devin Booker and Kyle Lowry entered their matchups against New Orleans averaging a combined 43.7 points (Booker – 26.5, Lowry 17.2)…The two were held to a combined 16 points on 5-of-21 shooting from the floor. #DoItBig

— Pelicans PR (@PelicansPR) November 13, 2018

I should mention the Pelicans pulled off this improbable victory on the road with the absences of two of their starters in Elfrid Payton and Nikola Mirotic. With the emergence of small forward Wes Johnson, Alvin Gentry faces an interesting opposition as both are likely to return from their ankle injuries against the Minnesota Timberwolves Wednesday night.

So now at 7-6, the Pelicans face off against the new look Timberwolves who look to introduce newly acquired Robert Covington and Dario Saric against the high-flying Pelicans. Based on their history, we know what to expect from AD and Towns.

While the Wolves will seek to right the ship with the NBA’s biggest distraction out of the fold, their game should play right into the Pelicans’ hands. The 30th rated defense and the tenth-fastest pace likely have the Pelicans’ licking their collective chops. The Wolves currently sit 12th offensively. The Pelicans, by comparison, are sixth offensively and improved defensively to 26th with their dismantling of the Raptors. Put simply, the Pelicans do what the Wolves do, they just do it better. The Wolves score 46 points in the paint, the Pelicans score 60. The Wolves carry a 48 eFG%, good for 26th, while the Pelicans carry 54 eFG%, good for sixth.

On paper, the Pelicans should earn their fourth victory in as many tries, but must be wary of finding the right rotations as they introduce Elfrid Payton back into the fold, and will hope to minimize the effect of First-Team All Defender Robert Covington in addition to KAT and the resurging Derrick Rose.

For more on the Pelicans and the development of their rotation, check out our podcast below!

Listen to “Pels Throttle Toronto + Is Jrue a Top-15 Player?” on Spreaker.

Photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images