A look at three key numbers related to Sunday’s game at Little Caesars Arena between New Orleans and Detroit (6 p.m. Central, Fox Sports New Orleans, ESPN Radio New Orleans 100.3 FM):
13, 29: New Orleans rankings among the 30 NBA teams in offensive and defensive efficiency, respectively, during road games this season. This winter, there are no fans in many NBA arenas – and limited attendance in a dozen venues – making homecourt advantage less of a factor on paper in 2020-21. But don’t tell that to the Pelicans, who are 10 places better offensively at home (No. 3 in offensive efficiency in the Smoothie King Center, behind only Milwaukee when it plays in Fiserv Forum and Utah in Vivint Arena), as well as seven spots better defensively at home compared to on the road. While allowing 116.9 points per 100 possessions in away games, the Pelicans’ second-to-last road defense has traveled better than only Brooklyn’s. Not surprisingly, New Orleans is now 7-5 at home, but just 4-9 on the road. The Pelicans have allowed their 13 hosts to shoot a scorching 42.2 percent from three-point range, one of just four teams to give up 40 percent-plus accuracy on the road this season (the Central Division trio of Milwaukee, Detroit and Cleveland are the others).
6: Detroit wins this season over teams currently top-four record-wise in the NBA’s two conferences. Don’t be fooled by the Pistons’ 7-19 overall record, which places them 14th in the Eastern Conference. Detroit is dangerous. Despite a major roster overhaul and some key injuries, the Pistons have already managed to beat Philadelphia, Brooklyn, Boston (twice), the Lakers and Phoenix, nearly sweeping the defending NBA champions before falling in double OT at Staples Center on Feb. 6. Another indicator that Detroit may be a better team than its record indicates? The Pistons have the league’s third-fewest wins, but based on a net rating of minus 4.3, they rank higher statistically than teams like 12-13 Sacramento (minus 4.9) and 10-15 Oklahoma City (minus 6.2). A big negative factor has been Detroit’s 3-12 record in clutch games, defined by NBA.com as games that were within five points in the final five minutes. New Orleans is 6-5 in clutch games.
2: Consecutive seasons Josh Hart has led New Orleans in games played, including “perfect attendance” in 2020-21, with the reserve catalyst appearing in all 25 games (Brandon Ingram is the only other Pelican with 25 games under his belt). Hart (low back spasms), who was upgraded this morning to probable to play against Detroit, topped New Orleans last season by appearing in 65 of the squad’s 72 regular season contests. There’s an NBA cliché that “the best ability is availability,” something the Villanova product has shown to be one of his major strengths since coming to the Crescent City. Add it up, and Hart has played in 80 consecutive games, including 55 straight to close last season. Meanwhile, fellow Pelicans reserve Nickeil Alexander-Walker (ankle) was also upgraded today to probable. The guard’s minutes have dipped recently, but he’s logged 25-plus minutes six times this season.
Previous game starting lineups
NEW ORLEANS (11-14)
Friday loss at Dallas
Lonzo Ball, Eric Bledsoe, Brandon Ingram, Zion Williamson, Steven Adams
Notes: This group is 10-11. Like the team overall, the Pelicans’ primary starting lineup has been more effective at home, with a 7-4 record in the Smoothie King Center, but a 3-7 record on the road. … New Orleans has relied on this combination for six consecutive games. It also had a “streak” to open the regular season of nine in a row, as well as a six-gamer in late January.
DETROIT (7-19)
Friday win at Boston
Delon Wright, Wayne Ellington, Jerami Grant, Blake Griffin, Isaiah Stewart
Notes: This group is 1-1 this season, starting just the past two games, a Thursday home loss vs. the Pacers, followed by Friday’s victory in TD Garden. … Detroit has used 10 different starting lineups in 2020-21, with the most common sporting a 4-7 record and consisting of Wright, Ellington, Grant, Griffin and Mason Plumlee at center. A rookie, Stewart came off the bench in 22 of his first 24 appearances.
Pelicans keys to victory
D UP IN DETROIT
There couldn’t be a more obvious area of needed improvement for New Orleans than its three-point defense, given that the Pelicans have allowed a league-record 50 treys over the past two games. Chicago (eighth in the NBA in three-point percentage) and Dallas (25th) both sank 25 threes to begin this New Orleans road trip; Detroit ranks 24th in percentage and 16th in makes. Ellington is shooting a career-best 44.5 percent.
PAINT TOUCHES
New Orleans has climbed all the way up to 16th in three-point shooting percentage (36.2) after being at or near the bottom of the league early in 2020-21, but it can’t drift from making sure Williamson remains a focal point on offense. The second-year pro is shooting over 60 percent from the field and went 14/15 at Dallas two days ago, but only took four second-half shots from inside the arc.
GRANT LAND
This offseason, many NBA analysts questioned the wisdom of free agent Grant exiting 2020 Western Conference finalist Denver for a bigger role with rebuilding Detroit, but the forward has thrived as a No. 1 option. The Syracuse product has led the Pistons in scoring 20 of their 26 games this season, making him an area of focus for NOLA’s defense, though Detroit was paced by rookie Saddiq Bey’s career-best 30 points Friday at Boston.
