Pelicans could be heavily reliant Friday on Brandon Ingram, who was benched against Lakers (2024)

Brandon Ingram played 23 minutes in Sunday’s loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, which was his first game back in the lineup after missing 12 games with a bone bruise in his left knee.

New Orleans Pelicans coach Willie Green said before Tuesday’s rematch against the Lakers in the play-in tournament that Ingram’s role would increase.

“I definitely anticipate his minutes going up tomorrow,” Green said Monday.

Ingram’s minutes went up. Barely. He was on the floor for 25 minutes, but he subbed out at the 7:38 mark of the fourth quarter and never returned.

Afterward, Green explained his decision not to close the game with Ingram.

“I just liked the group that was on the floor at the time," Green said after the Lakers defeated the Pelicans 110-106. "B.I. is still getting back. Still getting his rhythm. So I didn’t want to force the issue. I liked the group that was going.”

The Pelicans, who trailed by as many as 18 points, tied the game twice in the final three minutes. Their comeback fell short afterZion Williamson’s Herculean 40-point night came to an end when he subbed out with 3:13 remaining with an injury.

Now the Pelicans have one more chance to earn a spot in the playoffs. They need to beat the Sacramento Kings at 8:30 p.m. Friday at home. Williamson has been ruled out with a hamstring injury. That means the Pelicans will have to be more reliant on Ingram in a win-or-go-home game three days after he was benched in crunch time.

The Pelicans played their best basketball Tuesday with a bench-heavy lineup surrounding Williamson. Jose Alvarado, Herb Jones, Trey Murphy, Larry Nance Jr. and Williamson shared the court for eight minutes. The Pelicans won those minutes by 17 points.

Nance said quick decision-making was a key to that unit’s success.

"We are (at) our best not in slow-down basketball,” Nance said. “That’s not good for us. Sometimes we fall in that trap a lot.

"Again, we are a fun team, we are really, really good and hard to control when we’ve got Z(ion) coming down hill in transition, with guys that can finish and shoot around him. Keeping up with us in transition is a nightmare.”

Ingram scored 11 points on 4-of-12 shooting. CJ McCollum had nine points on 4-of-15 shooting. If Williamson had not gotten hurt, it looked as if Green planned to close the game without either of them in the lineup.

While Williamson, Ingram and McCollum each individually had strong seasons, the Pelicans were far from dominant with all three of them on the court. The Pelicans got outscored by 3.2 points per 100 possessions in their 737 minutes together during the regular season.

The top-end talent on the Pelicans’ roster might not fit together like puzzle pieces, but the team is on the precipice of the playoffs anyway. The Pelicans went 5-0 against the Kings during the regular season. They need to beat the Kings for a sixth time to reach the playoffs for the second time in three years.

Ingram is averaging 12 points in his two games back after returning from a left knee injury. The Pelicans likely will need more production from him to win their away into a first-round series against the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder.

“The fact that he’s out here right now, we’re thankful for it,” Nance said of Ingram. “He’s soldiering through some pain right now. We are happy to have him on the court with us. Having him out there with us is great added confidence.”