Tonight, the Phoenix Suns square off against the New Orleans Pelicans in the first round of the NBA playoffs. The Pelicans fought their way through the Play-In Tournament to secure the eighth seed while the Suns cruised to the top seed.
Although the Suns remain heavily favored in this series, the Pelicans are a well-coached, up-and-coming team that cannot be taken lightly. When these teams take the floor, these key matchups deserve our attention.
Mikal Bridges vs Brandon Ingram
The Warden vs mini-KD in Brandon Ingram represent possibly the most important matchup in this series. Ingram resembled New Orleans’ best player this year and their go-to scorer. He dropped 27 points to beat the Spurs in the first Play-In game and followed that up with a piece vs the Clippers. Needless to say, he’s coming into this series on a roll.
The Pelicans do not carry too many shot creators aside from him and CJ McCollum, so limiting Ingram promises to sink their entire offense.
Luckily the Suns have the right man for the job in Bridges. The Phoenix Defensive Player of the Year candidate wields enough length to contest the taller Ingram’s shots, and Ingram is not big enough to overpower Bridges like some wings. So far they’ve split the season matchup as far as success goes; Ingram scored 28 points in one game, and was held to just 16 in the other.
Bridges’ own advancements on offense may also prove influential in this series. Ingram cannot afford to expend energy on the defensive being responsible for so much on offense. If Bridges can make him work on both sides of the ball, it would pay major dividends as the series progresses.
Deandre Ayton vs The NOLA Bigs
Offensive rebounding and second chance points are a major part of the Pelicans’ offense. They rank third in the league in both those marks, grabbing 12.0 offensive rebounds per game leading to 15.1 second chance points per game. Their bigs, especially Jonas Valanciunas, are adept at crashing the glass.
Valanciunas seems…
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