What the Pelicans must do to finish January on a high

In the month of New Year’s resolutions, New Orleans Pelicans took a step forward during January. They handed the Washington Wizards the worst record in the NBA, won Zion Williamson is back in the lineup and they were competitive in almost every game they played.

The Pelicans went 5-4 through the first half of the month, doubling their win total and showing their ability to compete against some of the league’s best teams. The Pelicans lost to the Celtics on the road 120-119 and beat the Dallas Mavericks 119-116.

There is still plenty of work for them as they claw their way back into the Western Conference and are 11 games out of a playoff spot, but improvement has to start somewhere and the Pelicans seem committed to changing the energy surrounding the team.

How can the Pelicans finish January strong?

Do whatever it takes to keep Zion Williamson on the floor

Williamson has appeared in three games for the Pelicans since returning from injury on Jan. 7 in a loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves. He didn’t miss a beat, scoring 22 points with six rebounds, four assists, one block and three steals while shooting 9-of-15 from the field.

Williamson proved himself once again in the Pelicans’ 119-113 road win over the Chicago Bulls on Tuesday night. In 24 minutes of action, Williamson scored 21 points, seven rebounds, nine assists and shot 10 of 14 from the field.

The Pelicans are simply a better team when Williamson is on the floor. They, like Williamson himself, hope his days of being on the injury report are behind him and that he can make a consistent impact on the team as they try to return to form as a contender in the West.

Use the manageable portion to close out the month

After a tough stretch to wrap up the 2024 portion of the schedule, the Pelicans close out the month of January with an eight-game schedule that includes contests against some less tough competition.

The Pelicans have back-to-back games with the Utah Jazz – who are 1.5 games ahead of them in the West – on Friday and Monday nights. Then they have the Milwaukee Bucks, an above-average team, at home on Wednesday night.

The run continues with a road test against the Memphis Grizzlies, currently the No. 3 seed in the West, next Friday night. After that, however, are road games against the Charlotte Hornets and Toronto Raptors, the two worst teams in the Eastern Conference, on January 25th and 27th. The month ends with home games against the Mavericks and Celtics, two perennial contenders, on January 29th and January 31st.

If the Pelicans can come out on top in five or six of those eight games, it could give them the confidence to continue trying to improve and put their best brand of basketball on the floor as the season progresses.

Hold on Trey Murphy III hot

The 24-year-old guard has been on fire in his fourth NBA season. Murphy is averaging 21.6 points, five rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.2 steals per game while shooting 44.9 percent from the field.

Murphy has ended up with more of 30 points in the Pelicans’ three January contests, coming close to setting a new season high – currently 35 points in the Pelicans’ Dec. 27 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies – with 34 points in a New Year’s Day loss to the Miami Heat.

If Murphy can continue to run at this pace with Williamson constantly returning to the lineup and the back duo CJ McCollum and Dejounte Murray contributing at a high level, the turnaround could come sooner than expected for the Pelicans.

The eight games the Pelicans have on their schedule to end the month could go a long way in deciding what kind of season this ends up being for the team. Despite the rough start they had, the Pelicans were able to use this set of games to break their hole. At the same time, they could miss the opportunity to gather some momentum and fall further behind.

If the aforementioned three things happen for the Pelicans, they could continue to turn the season around and build confidence to take with them into the offseason and into the 2025-26 campaign. In addition, if Brandon Ingram could return to the floor after being sidelined with an ankle injury, the Pelicans would be in an even better position to get things going in the right direction.