A look at three key numbers related to Saturday’s game at the Smoothie King Center between Portland and New Orleans (6 p.m. Central, Bally Sports, WRNO 99.5 FM):
67: Zion Williamson is totaling points in games this week against Cleveland and the LA Clippers, the first time during the 2023-24 regular season that he has recorded consecutive outings of 30-plus points (his most recent previous example was in December 2022, when he had nights of 43 and 36 points against Minnesota and Philadelphia). No matter how you rank the Duke product’s numbers as of late, it’s clear that the two-time All-Star power forward is hitting his stride, averaging 29.3 points over the past four games while shooting at 63 percent on the field. He is also averaging 8.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.5 blocks during that span. Based on Basketball Reference’s “game score” metric — which calculates a player’s total impact on a specific game — four of Williamson’s 10 best performances this season have come since March 8, a streak of 3-1 for New Orleans which includes wins against Philadelphia, Atlanta and the Clippers.
14.7: New Orleans’ average point differential in seven head-to-head games against Portland since CJ McCollum joined the Pelicans in a trade in February 2022. McCollum went 6-1 against his former franchise NBA in those matchups, including blowout victories by 34 and 33 points (along with three others by double digits, part of a 103-point overall advantage). Not coincidentally, given the club’s direction following the trades of McCollum and longtime partner Damian Lillard, the Trail Blazers notched their third straight losing season, after qualifying for the playoffs. Western Conference playoffs eight straight years. Currently ranked fifth in the West, the Pelicans are trying to seal a 10th playoff appearance for McCollum in his 11 NBA seasons, with the only failure coming last spring.
23-12: Speaking of former Trail Blazers – even though he was in Portland for a much shorter stay than McCollum – Larry Nance Jr.’s return to the court following an injury in late December was an underrated part of the rise of New Orleans in the rankings. New Orleans is 23-12 since Nance missed 13 straight games in November/December due to injury, compared to just 6-8 in his first 14 appearances in 2023-24. Nance, who tried to play even though he wasn’t fully healthy in October/November, used his time off to get back to 100 percent physically. Nance scored 12 points in Friday’s critical win over the Clippers, including two points, two rebounds and two assists in the fourth quarter, thriving at the dunker point. Nance and NOLA’s bench helped put Los Angeles away by recording 18 of the hosts’ 30 points in the fourth quarter.
Starting lineups from previous match
PORTLAND (19-47, 14TH WEST)
Defeat Thursday against New York
Scoot Henderson, Dalano Banton, Kris Murray, Toumani Camara, Deandre Ayton
Notes: On a long list of Trail Blazers injuries, Malcolm Brogdon (elbow), Shaedon Sharpe (abdominal) and Robert Williams III (knee) are missing. Jerami Grant (hamstring) and Jabari Walker (hip) are doubtful. Matisse Thybulle (ankle) is questionable. Anfernee Simons (knee) and Rayan Rupert (ankle) are probable. …Portland has the fifth-worst record in the NBA, likely on its way to a pre-lottery sweet spot in the mid-May event. Charlotte (17-50) is just behind the Blazers in the overall league standings.
NEW ORLEANS (40-26, 5TH WEST)
Friday’s win against LA Clippers
CJ McCollum, Herb Jones, Trey Murphy, Zion Williamson, Jonas Valanciunas
Notes: The Pelicans will submit their official injury report by the league-mandated 1 p.m. local deadline for the second game of all back-to-backs. … The Pelicans moved to within two games of the fourth-place Clippers (42-24) with Friday’s victory, while winning the tiebreaker based on the season series (3-1). … New Orleans has a 1.5 game lead over No. 6 Sacramento (38-27). The Kings host New York on Saturday at 9 p.m. at Golden 1 Center. … The Pelicans’ most common starting lineup is 24-14 this season. With two other combinations, New Orleans is 32-17 (8-9 in all other games).
STOP MENTALITY
In the only previous meeting of the season between New Orleans and Portland, on February 10, the Pelicans held the Trail Blazers to a meager 84 points and 6/21 on three-pointers, in a road victory with a low score. New Orleans will look to repeat that defensive success against a young, rebuilding opponent who is also missing several key pieces due to injury.
LIMIT SECOND CHANCES
Portland’s top efficiency category might be its offensive rebounding, ranking fourth in that stat with 12.8 per game (only Atlanta, New York and Utah get more). Meanwhile, New Orleans is 14th in defensive rebounding percentage (72.1). The Blazers won the rebounding total by a margin of 42-36 in the February 10 game, with 11 offensive rebounds.
MATCH TO WATCH
At center, Valanciunas (16 points, nine rebounds at Portland on Feb. 10) starts against Ayton, who is in the midst of one of the best statistical stretches of his career. The former No. 1 overall draft pick out of Arizona has averaged 29.0 points and 16.8 rebounds over his last four games, shooting 61 percent from the field.
