The New Orleans Pelicans escaped a blowout loss, despite many expecting them to fall hard against the OKC Thunder. Instead, the team playing without their best player – Zion Williamson -, put up an incredible display, giving Oklahoma City a real run for their money, but eventually losing 92-94. Despite the loss, however, fans were hyped by what they’d seen from the eighth seed. As for Shaquille O’Neal though, he couldn’t help but be agitated by the performance of two players in particular.
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Having been a keen viewer of the game, Shaq bore witness to a stellar performance by the Pelicans. However, after the conclusion of the game, the first thing he stated was the following about Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum.
“I think that in order for New Orleans to win, CJ McCollum and Brandon Ingram gonna have to have a breakout game. 9-22 is not good, 5-17 is really not good,” Shaq stated.
Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum combined to go 14-39 from the field.
Also another crunch time loss and are now 0-24 when trailing going into the 4th.
— Pro Pels Talk (@ProPelsTalk) April 22, 2024
With Zion Williamson out due to a left hamstring injury, the dynamic duo of CJ McCollum and Brandon Ingram was forced to do the majority of the heavy lifting. So, McCollum and Ingram only shooting a combined 14-39 from the field, per NBA.com, was beyond disappointing, making Shaq’s initial statement a deeply accurate one.
However, after expressing his dissatisfaction with the leaders’ shooting performance, the Big Aristotle was also sure to announce just how impressed he was with the team as a whole. In fact, the Lakers legend even seemed motivated by the near loss. Lauding the New Orleans team for being “great” on the road, Shaq also shed light on the fact that the Pelicans camp didn’t seem to panic at any given moment. He further said the following on the game.
“Still, they almost won. They are a great road team, they have confidence, there is no panic in this team. I think they’re gonna be more confident than OKC… If he (CJ) can get a good game, where he can get 30 or 40, they have a chance to win,” Shaq concluded.
Shaq isn’t incorrect with either of his claims. With Shai-Gilgeous Alexander and Co. lacking postseason experience, the Pelicans have a rather big chance to win this series. However, for Willie Green’s boys to pull off such an upset, the McCollum-Ingram duo needs to step up big time.
Having made nine postseason appearances in his career, CJ needs to be the one who carries the team’s offensive load. So, Shaq is also spot-on in stating that a 40.9% FG and 22.2% 3FG (per NBA.com) display by the guard is unacceptable during a game of this gravity.
The lackluster outings by CJ McCollum and Brandon Ingram saw the likes of Trey Murphy III and Herbert Jones rise to the occasion. If the two wing players can keep putting up such performances, the addition of a healthy Zion Williamson to this lineup would simply become deadly.
However, for now, the New Orleans Pelicans will have to rely on no one other than the players they have available. Will it be enough to get them to the next round?
Only time will tell.
