Raptors at Pelicans
All-Star Anthony Davis will be a bystander when his New Orleans squad returns home to take on Toronto on Monday night. While the Pelicans were able to snap a four-game losing streak in convincing fashion with a 105-91 victory at Miami on Saturday, they did so after losing Davis and reserve sharpshooter Ryan Anderson to early injuries. Davis aggravated a shoulder issue that caused him to miss two games before the All-Star break and he is expected to be out up to two weeks this time.
Anderson could miss up to four weeks with a sprained MCL in his right knee, adding to the woes for a team fighting for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference. The Raptors are in the midst of four straight games against the West, the first of which did not go well, as Toronto shot 32.5 percent from the floor in a 98-76 setback at Houston on Saturday. James Johnson scored a career-high 27 points but his teammates combined to go 15-of-61 from the floor as the Raptors sustained their most lopsided loss of the season.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, NBATV, TSN (Toronto), FSN New Orleans
ABOUT THE RAPTORS (37-18): Kyle Lowry was Toronto's lone All-Star Game participant, and a worthy one, but he has endured some offensive woes of late and was one of the culprits in Saturday's loss to Houston. Lowry missed all seven of his 3-point tries and finished 2-of-13 from the floor, falling to 32 percent over a four-game span. He also committed seven turnovers - matching his highest total since Dec. 14 - as the Raptors coughed it up 23 times, a team season high for a regulation affair.
ABOUT THE PELICANS (28-27): New Orleans did not need Davis to secure a 95-93 win at Toronto earlier in the season, as he was out with a foot injury. Reserve center Alexis Ajinca provided a big boost in that one, scoring a career-high 22 points on 10-of-13 shooting against his former team. Tyreke Evans, who capped a 26-point effort with a late basket to seal that win, is the only healthy Pelican among the team's top four scorers, with Davis, Anderson and guard Jrue Holiday all sidelined.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Raptors SG Lou Williams missed Saturday's game with a sprained left ankle.
2. Pelicans SG Eric Gordon, who scored 24 points in the win over Miami, is 31-of-51 from 3-point distance over a nine-game stretch.
3. Toronto is 12-8 against the West, but just 4-6 in such games on the road.