Willie Green's Honest Statement After Pelicans-Mavericks

The Pelicans are in a tailspin after a 41-point road loss to the Mavericks on Tuesday.

Terry Kimble | 3 Hours Ago

Nov 16, 2024; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Pelicans head coach Willie Green gives direction against the Los Angeles Lakers during the first half at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images / Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

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The New Orleans Pelicans fell to 4-11 on the season after a 132-91 blowout loss to the Dallas Mavericks. New Orleans was again without multiple injured players, including Zion Williamson, Dejounte Murray, Herb Jones, CJ McCollum, Jordan Hawkins, and Jose Alvarado. The team has lost 11 of its last 13 games. Tuesday's game was the Pelicans second NBA Cup Game of the year.

Head coach Willie Green honestly assessed the loss during his postgame press conference.

"We got beat. There's no way around it," Green told reporters after the game. "Our guys went out and played hard, but we got beat tonight. We have to go back and watch some film to see what areas we can improve on."

LIVE: Willie Green #Pelicans | @CaesarsSports https://t.co/YYq8d0SXPA
— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) November 20, 2024

These games have little room for error, and New Orleans is missing so much of its firepower. The Pelicans committed 21 turnovers that led to 28 points for Dallas. New Orleans was also outscored 66-34 in the paint and outrebounded 48-37 on the boards.

Things will get more challenging for the Pelicans as they travel on the road to face the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday night. Cleveland lost their first game of the season on Tuesday to the Boston Celtics but beat the Pelicans last week in New Orleans.

The Pelicans hope to get some key players back soon, starting with CJ McCollum, who has recently started 5-on-5 contact drills in practice. McCollum has missed the last 11 games with an oblique injury and is close to returning. The veteran guard averages 18.8 points, 4.0 assists, and 2.3 steals this season.

Wednesday's tip-off against the Cavs is for 6:30 p.m.

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