Pelicans Forward Brandon Ingram Season Recap

Ingram's phenomenal play on the court overshadowed by the time spent off of it.
Pelicans Forward Brandon Ingram Season Recap
Pelicans Forward Brandon Ingram Season Recap /
In this story:

New Orleans, La- New Orleans Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram wants to use this offseason to get "stronger and better." It's hard to imagine how much better he can get considering his post-All-Star numbers. Following the All-Star break, he averaged 27.3 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 6.9 assists, with an elite shooting split of 50/37/89. 

Getting stronger should be a point of emphasis for Ingram. Since joining the Pelicans in 2019-2020, the number of games played for Ingram decreased every season. Excluding his rookie season and the Covid year, where teams did not play a full 82-game schedule, Ingram has missed at least 20 games in every season of his career. 

This season he was hampered by a toe injury that caused him to miss 29 straight games. Ingram played just 45 games this season, the lowest of his career. The injuries to Ingram were a reflection of the Pelicans' season as a whole. He, CJ McCollum, and Zion Williamson played only ten games together this season. 

“We can look back at that, and we’ve thought about that the whole year, how we started off and how we could have been,” Ingram said. “But we have to continue to live in the present. We made steps. It would’ve been great to have our full group, but that never happens throughout a season. Hopefully, we can have that next year.”

Brandon Ingram Zion Williamson
Apr 26, 2021; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson (1) is congratulated by forward Brandon Ingram (14) after making a three point basket against LA Clippers during the second half at the Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

Ingram certainly has positive building blocks from this year on the court. He averaged the most points (24.7) and assists (5.8) in his career. He recorded his first two triple-doubles in a week, and the 42 wins the Pelicans posted this season gave Ingram the first winning regular season of his career. 

The Pelicans forward continues to dominate the midrange, which seems to be a lost art in this day and time. Ingram averaged the third-most made shots per game in the midrange (2.9). He only trailed DeMar DeRozan and Kevin Durant in that category. 

There was also an improvement on the defensive end, especially during the last part of the season. With the Pelicans fighting for potential playoff seeding, Ingram recorded three multi-steal games in the last week of the season.  

Season Highlight

March 25 at Los Angeles Clippers. 32 points, career-high 13 assists. 

Brandon Ingram followed up his first career triple-double with an encore performance for the ages. The game held significant stakes because the Clippers and Pels were so close in the loss column. Ingram scored 32 points on 60% shooting from three, with a career-high 13 assists and zero turnovers. The victory was part of a five-game streak that helped propel them to the NBA Play-In tournament. 

Season Lowlight

January 25 against Minnesota Timber Wolves. 19 points on season-worst 22% shooting.

To be fair, this was the contest Ingram returned from a 29-game hiatus because of injury. His rust clearly showed shooting 4/18 from the field, including 0/6 from the 3-point line. He committed four turnovers and was a -19 while on the court. It became his 3rd worst +/- of the season and the only time he attempted that many three-point shots without making at least one. 

Future Outlook

Ingram said in the postgame conference against the Oklahoma City Thunder that the offseason is a time to "lock in" for next year. Pelicans' coaches credited him with gathering teammates last offseason to practice and build continuity with each other. At 25, Ingram is progressing into a leadership role that he hopes will pay dividends for this team.

Like Williamson, the key for Ingram is staying healthy as an individual and as a nucleus for the Pelicans to excel. His play is strong on the court. He needs to be available more to show it. 

Read More Pelicans Scoop Articles


Published
Terry Kimble
TERRY KIMBLE

Pelicans Scoop Writer