The Charlotte Hornets and the New Orleans Pelicans are in very similar situations as they meet on Sunday in New Orleans.
Both teams have been eliminated from playoff contention and both have been hit hard by injuries. That creates opportunities for young players to take on bigger roles and, perhaps, earn even bigger ones for next season.
The Hornets (18-55) will be playing their second game since the announcement that star guard LaMelo Ball will miss the rest of the season because of ankle and wrist injuries.
Rookie KJ Simpson, who’s on a two-way contract, moved into the starting lineup in Ball’s place. He had 14 points and three assists in a 108-97 loss Friday at Toronto.
“KJ’s got to be the head of the snake for us right now, especially not having Melo in there as our primary ball handler,” Charlotte coach Charles Lee said.
But Lee isn’t expecting the second-round draft choice to be solely responsible for replacing all that Ball brought to the team — 25.2 points, 7.4 assists and 4.9 rebounds per game.
Mark Williams had 18 points and 12 rebounds and four teammates scored in double figures against the Raptors.
“He’s got to be ready to expect some pressure every game,” Lee said of Simpson, “but it’s also on the team to continue to try to help him. It’s on himself to figure out ways to help us initiate the offense.”
Charlotte, which has lost its last four games, had its most lopsided victory of the season when it defeated visiting New Orleans 123-92 on Jan. 25. The Hornets have the third-worst record in the NBA, but have just two fewer wins than the Pelicans (20-54). Therefore, Sunday’s game could have an impact on the lottery odds for each team.
Pelicans leading scorer Zion Williamson (low back contusion) has missed the last four games and fourth-leading scorer CJ McCollum (right foot contusion) has missed the last two.
New Orleans already had lost starting point guard Dejounte Murray, third-leading scorer Trey Murphy III and starting forward Herbert Jones for the season. It traded away second-leading scorer Brandon Ingram last month while he was sidelined by an ankle injury.
The Pelicans started rookie center Yves Missi and second-year guard Jordan Hawkins and three of the first players off the bench were rookies (Karlo Matkovic, Antonio Reeves and Keion Brooks Jr.) in a 111-95 loss to visiting Golden State on Friday.
New Orleans raced to a 14-2 lead in less than five minutes and led by three points at halftime. But Golden State inched ahead by a point after three quarters and outscored the Pelicans 28-13 in the fourth quarter.
“When you’re playing against a really good team, you have to do your best to be solid for 48 minutes,” head coach Willie Green said. “It was about 3 1/2 quarters. We’ve got to get closer to 48 minutes of sustaining that level of play. That’s the next step for this young group.”
