Pelicans Basketball is Here: Pelicans @ Pacers Preseason Opener Preview

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Published: October 3, 2015

 

Hooray! The doldrums of the offseason have passed. We now get real live Pelicans basketball to watch….er I mean listen to! Even if it is game 1 of the preseason, you can bet we will analyze it to a pulp.

Tonight at 6pm central the Pelicans will face off against the revamped Indiana Pacers at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. You can catch the game at the new flagstaff station WRNO 99.5 FM, with pregame coverage starting at 5pm central. Neither team will be broadcasting the game on T.V.

The Pacers went through a complete identity change this offseason. Gone are the days of the gritty, hard-nosed, defensive Pacers. Here are the days of Paul George starting at Power Forward. As you may have heard, the Pacers traded their defensive backbone, Roy Hibbert, to the Lakers in exchange for a draft pick. The Pacers also lost starting Forward, David West, to San Antonio in free agency. In their stead, the Pacers are projected to start Ian Mahinmi and Paul George at the Center and Power Forward positions. Small ball is in vogue these days and every team wants to play faster. To help with that, the Pacers also acquired Guard, Monta Ellis.  Look for him to share ball handling duties with George Hill in the starting lineup. Rounding out their starting line up is Forward, C.J. Miles.


On the flipside, this is our first chance to see the newly Gentryfied Pelicans in action vs another opponent. Unfortunately, we may not be seeing much of some of the starters due to precautionary measures. Per Brett Dawson of the Advocate, the Pelican’s injury report is as stands:

 


At first glance, this list may be a cause for concern. The season hasn’t started and our list is already 5 people long. However, reports out of camp have been positive and Davis and Holiday are likely playing. We knew about Holiday’s minute restriction, and Davis’s ankle tweak during USAB’s camp, but Tyreke is a new name on the list. According to Jim Eichenhofer of Pelicans.com,

“Purely as a precautionary measure, Tyreke Evans won’t play tonight, after banging knees during training camp. Evans would be playing if it were a regular season game.”

As of now, we are unsure who will starting in his place. But expect Norris Cole to see a lot of minutes tonight. Also, congratulations to Alonzo Gee for the birth of his child. Gee is at home in Florida, spending time with family.

Without much further ado, here are a few things to look (listen) for this game:

  • Eric Gordon: Gordon has been praising the system all season long, so keep an eye out for how he is used. With Tyreke out, and Jrue limited, expect Gordon to see a lot of touches early in the minutes he plays.
  • Pace: Not much can be taken away from a preseason game, but the preseason does often give a glimpse into how fast teams will play. As this has been stressed by both the coaching staff and players, let’s see how many possessions we end the game with.
  • Davis vs George at the PF spot: We heard how Davis bulked up this season and worked on his post game. Can he take advantage of size in this matchup? Can he keep up on the defensive end? The two all-stars may not see many minutes tonight, but this is a matchup to watch out for.

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