Lakers at Pelicans
The New Orleans Pelicans possess a star player in Anthony Davis but one thing they have trouble obtaining are victories. Even with Davis off to a spectacular start, New Orleans is winning just one-third of its games entering Tuesday's home contest against the Los Angeles Lakers.
The 23-year-old Davis leads the NBA in scoring (31.6) and blocked shots (2.8) and ranks eighth in rebounding (10.9) and carries the squad on a near-nightly basis. He poured in 36 points and collected 13 rebounds Sunday but the Pelicans were ghastly overall while suffering a 91-81 loss to the lowly Dallas Mavericks. Los Angeles hopes to get power forward Julius Randle (hip) back from a three-game absence as it begins a stretch of four road games in five nights. "We are going from the south (New Orleans) to the north (Chicago) to the north (Toronto) back to the south (Memphis)," Lakers coach Luke Walton told reporters. "It makes zero sense."
TV: 8 p.m. ET, Spectrum SportsNet (Los Angeles), FSN New Orleans
ABOUT THE LAKERS (9-9): The losses of Randle and point guard D'Angelo Russell (knee) have been minimized in part by the continuation of the superb bench production the team is receiving. The reserves combined for 65 points in Sunday's 109-94 victory over the Atlanta Hawks as guards Lou Williams (21 points) and Jordan Clarkson (18) and forward Larry Nance Jr. (12 points, 10 rebounds) all had solid performances. "Groups build chemistry together, and that group has it," Walton said. "They have been one of the best groups of five — starters or benches — all season long in the NBA. We feel that we have a big advantage when that group gets on the court together."
ABOUT THE PELICANS (6-12): New Orleans briefly played well upon the return of guard Jrue Holiday from a personal situation but back-to-back defeats have stunted the momentum and raised questions about the effort. "It was the same thing," Davis said after Sunday's loss. "We've got to come out and play from the opening tip. We can't try to go basket for basket. We're a defensive-minded team and we've got to come out and guard somebody." Davis is averaging 37.3 points over the past three games and has recorded 12 30-points outings in 17 games played.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Lakers won three of the past four meetings, including a 126-99 victory Nov. 12.
2. Los Angeles SG Nick Young is 10-of-15 from 3-point range over his past three appearances.
3. Holiday is averaging 16.3 points and 6.5 assists in six games since returning from helping his wife recover from surgery to remove a brain tumor.