Game ID: 22300262
Philadelphia 76ers @ New Orleans Pelicans
Wednesday, November 29, 2023 at 8:00 PM ET
Smoothie King Center, New Orleans, LA
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
NOP 39 29 34 22 124PHI 24 24 33 33 114
NOP vs PHI ScoutingNOP vs PHI Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
NOP availability going into 11/22 · 1 day's restOUT McCollum missed 8 since 11/06, out tonight
OUT Nance Jr. missed 4 since 11/14, returns tonight: 12 min (62% of 20)
BACK Jones back 11/14 after 3, 31 min since (100% of 31)
BACK Alvarado back 11/20 after 2, 15 min since (84% of 18)
NEW Daniels 22 to 31 min over the last 5
NEW Hawkins 17 to 30 min over the last 5
NEW Ryan 14 to 23 min over the last 4
NOP availability going into 11/24 · 1 day's restOUT McCollum missed 9 since 11/06, out tonight
OUT Ryan missed 2 since 11/20, out tonight
BACK Jones back 11/14 after 3, 32 min since (105% of 31)
BACK Nance Jr. back 11/22 after 4, 12 min since (62% of 20)
BACK Alvarado back 11/20 after 2, 17 min since (93% of 18)
NEW Daniels 22 to 31 min over the last 5
NEW Hawkins 17 to 29 min over the last 5
NOP availability going into 11/25 · back-to-backOUT McCollum missed 10 since 11/06, out tonight
OUT Ryan missed 3 since 11/20, out tonight
BACK Nance Jr. back 11/22 after 4, 16 min since (82% of 20)
BACK Alvarado back 11/20 after 2, 16 min since (90% of 18)
NEW Daniels 22 to 32 min over the last 5
NEW Hawkins 17 to 27 min over the last 5
NOP availability going into 11/27 · 1 day's restOUT McCollum missed 11 since 11/06, out tonight
OUT Ryan missed 4 since 11/20, out tonight
BACK Nance Jr. back 11/22 after 4, 15 min since (74% of 20)
BACK Alvarado back 11/20 after 2, 18 min since (99% of 18)
NEW Daniels 22 to 32 min over the last 5
NEW Hawkins 17 to 29 min over the last 5
NOP availability going into 11/29 · 1 day's restOUT McCollum missed 12 since 11/06, returns tonight: 28 min (85% of 33)
OUT Ryan missed 5 since 11/20, out tonight
BACK Nance Jr. back 11/22 after 4, 13 min since (67% of 20)
BACK Alvarado back 11/20 after 2, 17 min since (95% of 18)
NEW Daniels 22 to 29 min over the last 5
NEW Marshall 19 to 24 min over the last 5
NEW Hawkins 17 to 27 min over the last 5
NOP availability going into 12/01 · 1 day's restOUT Ryan missed 6 since 11/20, out tonight
BACK McCollum back 11/29 after 12, 28 min since (85% of 33)
BACK Nance Jr. back 11/22 after 4, 13 min since (67% of 20)
NEW Valančiūnas 23 to 29 min over the last 5
NEW Daniels 22 to 27 min over the last 5
NEW Hawkins 17 to 26 min over the last 5
NOP availability going into 12/02 · back-to-backOUT Nance Jr. missed 2 since 11/29, out tonight
OUT Ryan missed 7 since 11/20, out tonight
BACK McCollum back 11/29 after 12, 33 min since (101% of 33)
NEW Valančiūnas 23 to 29 min over the last 5
NEW Hawkins 17 to 25 min over the last 5
NOP availability going into 12/04 · 1 day's restOUT Nance Jr. missed 3 since 11/29, out tonight
OUT Ryan missed 8 since 11/20, out tonight
BACK McCollum back 11/29 after 12, 33 min since (101% of 33)
NEW Valančiūnas 23 to 31 min over the last 5
NEW Hawkins 17 to 26 min over the last 5
NOP availability going into 12/07 · 2 days' restOUT Nance Jr. missed 4 since 11/29, out tonight
OUT Ryan missed 9 since 11/20, out tonight
BACK McCollum back 11/29 after 12, 34 min since (103% of 33)
NEW Valančiūnas 23 to 31 min over the last 5
NEW Hawkins 17 to 22 min over the last 4
PHI availability going into 11/21 · 1 day's restOUT Oubre Jr. missed 5 since 11/12, out tonight
BACK Batum back 11/19 after 3, 24 min since (91% of 26)
BACK House Jr. back 11/12 after 2, 14 min since (93% of 15)
BACK Bamba back 11/19 after 6, 3 min since (24% of 13)
BACK Martin back 11/14 after 3, 2 min since (20% of 12)
BACK Springer back 11/15 after 2, 21 min since (179% of 12)
NEW Melton 26 to 32 min over the last 5
PHI availability going into 11/22 · back-to-backOUT Oubre Jr. missed 6 since 11/12, out tonight
BACK Batum back 11/19 after 3, 25 min since (97% of 26)
BACK Bamba back 11/19 after 6, 3 min since (24% of 13)
BACK Martin back 11/14 after 3, 2 min since (20% of 12)
BACK Springer back 11/15 after 2, 18 min since (149% of 12)
NEW Melton 26 to 35 min over the last 5
PHI availability going into 11/25 · 2 days' restOUT Oubre Jr. missed 7 since 11/12, out tonight
BACK Batum back 11/19 after 3, 25 min since (96% of 26)
BACK Bamba back 11/19 after 6, 4 min since (33% of 13)
BACK Martin back 11/19 after 2, 5 min since (41% of 12)
BACK Springer back 11/15 after 2, 16 min since (133% of 12)
NEW Melton 26 to 34 min over the last 5
PHI availability going into 11/27 · 1 day's restOUT Oubre Jr. missed 8 since 11/12, out tonight
BACK Batum back 11/19 after 3, 27 min since (103% of 26)
BACK Bamba back 11/19 after 6, 4 min since (33% of 13)
BACK Martin back 11/19 after 2, 5 min since (41% of 12)
NEW Melton 26 to 33 min over the last 5
PHI availability going into 11/29 · 1 day's restOUT Oubre Jr. missed 9 since 11/12, out tonight
OUT House Jr. missed 2 since 11/25, out tonight
OUT Springer missed 2 since 11/25, out tonight
BACK Batum back 11/19 after 3, 27 min since (105% of 26)
BACK Bamba back 11/19 after 6, 5 min since (36% of 13)
BACK Martin back 11/19 after 2, 5 min since (42% of 12)
PHI availability going into 12/01 · 1 day's restOUT Oubre Jr. missed 10 since 11/12, out tonight
OUT House Jr. missed 3 since 11/25, out tonight
OUT Springer missed 3 since 11/25, out tonight
NEW Melton 26 to 31 min over the last 5
PHI availability going into 12/06 · 4 days' restOUT Embiid missed 2 since 11/29, returns tonight: 38 min (110% of 35)
OUT Oubre Jr. missed 11 since 11/12, returns tonight: 19 min (63% of 31)
OUT House Jr. missed 4 since 11/25, out tonight
OUT Springer missed 4 since 11/25, out tonight
NEW Covington 16 to 24 min over the last 5
PHI availability going into 12/08 · 1 day's restOUT House Jr. missed 5 since 11/25, out tonight
OUT Springer missed 5 since 11/25, out tonight
BACK Embiid back 12/06 after 2, 38 min since (110% of 35)
BACK Oubre Jr. back 12/06 after 11, 19 min since (63% of 31)
NEW Beverley 20 to 25 min over the last 5
PHI availability going into 12/11 · 2 days' restOUT House Jr. missed 6 since 11/25, returns tonight: 9 min (61% of 15)
OUT Martin missed 2 since 12/06, returns tonight: 6 min (47% of 12)
OUT Springer missed 6 since 11/25, returns tonight: 9 min (78% of 12)
BACK Embiid back 12/06 after 2, 37 min since (107% of 35)
BACK Oubre Jr. back 12/06 after 11, 21 min since (70% of 31)
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New Orleans comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 106, shooting 48 percent and 34 from three, 26 free throws a game; Williamson at 27 and Ingram at 27 a game. It has won the glass by 7 a night. Without McCollum (12 straight). One day's rest. Philadelphia comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 110, shooting 45 percent and 37 from three, 31 free throws a game; Embiid at 32 and Maxey at 26 a game. Without Oubre Jr. (9 straight), House Jr. (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: New Orleans wins, and the game turns on the glass, where New Orleans has been plus-7 a night and Philadelphia plus-3 and the line, where Philadelphia takes 31 free throws a game to New Orleans's 26. Call it New Orleans 114, Philadelphia 113, Philadelphia keeping it close.
11/22 vs SAC 117-112 — NOP notes
NOP won 117-112. NOP shot 47% (41 of 87) to SAC's 45%, 7 of 30 from three. NOP turned it over 10 times to SAC's 15. The glass went 48-38 for them. Williamson led with 25 (10 of 16, 5 of 7 at the line); Ingram added 23, Valančiūnas 15. The hinge was Q2, 32-20: a lead of 2 became 14, and the lead reached 17. Marshall was the night's best plus/minus at +25.
11/24 @ LAC 116-106 — NOP notes
NOP won 116-106. NOP shot 49% (43 of 88) to LAC's 46%, 10 of 24 from three, and went to the line 27 times to LAC's 17 — 20 points from the stripe to their 11. The glass went 50-39 for them. Williamson led with 32 (13 of 25, 6 of 9 at the line); Ingram added 30, Jones 14. The hinge was Q1, 36-23: from level to 13 ahead, and the lead reached 21. Jones was the night's best plus/minus at +22.
11/25 @ UTA 100-105 — NOP notes
NOP lost 100-105. NOP shot 42% (39 of 93) to UTA's 44%, 11 of 36 from three. NOP turned it over 13 times to UTA's 23. The glass went 42-52 against them. Ingram led with 26 (10 of 22, 1 of 4 from three, 5 of 8 at the line); Hawkins added 25, Jones 13. Q1 was theirs, 29-22, but the other 3 periods went 83-71 against them. They led by as many as 13. Daniels's -18 in 34 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/27 @ UTA 112-114 — NOP notes
NOP lost 112-114. NOP shot 50% (44 of 88) to UTA's 42%, 7 of 22 from three. Williamson led with 26 (9 of 16, 7 of 9 at the line); Ingram added 25, Valančiūnas 14. Q2 was theirs, 31-25, the deficit cut from 8 to 2, but the other 3 periods went 89-81 against them. Jones's -10 in 32 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/29 vs PHI 124-114 — NOP notes
NOP won 124-114. NOP shot 54% (42 of 78) to PHI's 52%, 10 of 30 from three, and went to the line 34 times to PHI's 18 — 30 points from the stripe to their 16. The glass went 40-30 for them. Williamson led with 33 (11 of 12, 11 of 12 at the line); McCollum added 20, Valančiūnas 19. The hinge was Q1, 39-24: from level to 15 ahead, and the lead reached 29. McCollum was the night's best plus/minus at +19.
12/01 vs SAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New Orleans comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 110, shooting 48 percent and 32 from three, 28 free throws a game; Williamson at 29 and Ingram at 24 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. One day's rest. San Antonio comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 124, shooting 45 percent and 32 from three, 20 free throws a game; Vassell at 22 and Wembanyama at 19 a game. That is 5 straight losses. Second night of a back-to-back.
So: New Orleans wins, and the game turns on the defense, New Orleans allowing 110 a night to San Antonio's 124 and the line, where New Orleans takes 28 free throws a game to San Antonio's 20. Call it New Orleans 121, San Antonio 110, New Orleans by 11.
12/02 @ CHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Chicago comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 107 a night and allowing 118, shooting 45 percent and 38 from three, 20 free throws a game; DeRozan at 22 and White at 20 a game. One day's rest. New Orleans comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 109, shooting 49 percent and 34 from three, 27 free throws a game; Williamson at 26 and Ingram at 22 a game. Without Nance Jr. (2 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: New Orleans wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where New Orleans has been plus-4 a night and Chicago minus-3 and the defense, New Orleans allowing 109 a night to Chicago's 118. Call it New Orleans 113, Chicago 111, Chicago keeping it close.
12/04 @ SAC — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Sacramento comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 120, shooting 47 percent and 38 from three, 26 free throws a game; Fox at 31 and Monk at 18 a game. One day's rest. New Orleans comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 113, shooting 49 percent and 32 from three, 28 free throws a game; Williamson at 24 and Ingram at 21 a game. Without Nance Jr. (3 straight). One day's rest.
So: Sacramento wins, and the game turns on the arc, Sacramento at 38 percent from three to New Orleans's 32 and the defense, New Orleans allowing 113 a night to Sacramento's 120. Call it Sacramento 117, New Orleans 115, New Orleans keeping it close.
12/07 @ LAL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Lakers come in 3-2 over their last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 116, shooting 45 percent and 31 from three, 27 free throws a game; Davis at 26 and James at 22 a game. Without Vincent (18 straight). One day's rest. New Orleans comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 115, shooting 51 percent and 35 from three, 29 free throws a game; Williamson at 22 and Ingram at 21 a game. It has won the glass by 4 a night. Without Nance Jr. (4 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: New Orleans wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where New Orleans has been plus-4 a night and the Lakers minus-4 and the arc, New Orleans at 35 percent from three to the Lakers' 31. Call it New Orleans 115, the Lakers 114, the Lakers keeping it close.
11/21 vs CLE 119-122 — PHI notes
PHI lost 119-122 in 1 overtime. PHI shot 42% (40 of 96) to CLE's 49%, 11 of 35 from three, and went to the line 34 times to CLE's 25 — 28 points from the stripe to their 21. The glass went 44-56 against them. Embiid led with 32 (9 of 21, 1 of 3 from three, 13 of 16 at the line); Maxey added 30, Harris 23. Q4 was theirs, 31-22, the deficit cut from 9 to 0, but the other 4 periods went 100-88 against them.
11/22 @ MIN 99-112 — PHI notes
PHI lost 99-112. PHI shot 39% (34 of 87) to MIN's 48%, 7 of 32 from three, and went to the line 30 times to MIN's 24 — 24 points from the stripe to their 16. Maxey led with 16 (7 of 19, 0 of 5 from three); Melton added 16, Morris Sr. 16. Q2 was theirs, 29-20, the deficit cut from 17 to 8, but the other 3 periods went 92-70 against them. Batum's -23 in 24 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/25 @ OKC 127-123 — PHI notes
PHI won 127-123. PHI shot 46% (38 of 83) to OKC's 44%, 14 of 41 from three, and went to the line 45 times to OKC's 26 — 37 points from the stripe to their 21. PHI turned it over 12 times to OKC's 4. The glass went 49-38 for them. Embiid led with 35 (8 of 18, 0 of 4 from three, 19 of 21 at the line); Maxey added 28, Harris 16. The hinge was Q3, 28-21: a lead of 4 became 11. Harris was the night's best plus/minus at +20.
11/27 vs LAL 138-94 — PHI notes
PHI won 138-94. PHI shot 51% (47 of 93) to LAL's 47%, 22 of 46 from three, and went to the line 26 times to LAL's 13 — 22 points from the stripe to their 9. PHI turned it over 5 times to LAL's 17. The glass went 48-32 for them. Maxey led with 31 (9 of 20, 5 of 12 from three, 8 of 9 at the line); Embiid added 30, Morris Sr. 16. The hinge was Q4, 40-14: a lead of 18 became 44. Reed was the night's best plus/minus at +33.
11/29 @ NOP 114-124 — PHI notes
PHI lost 114-124. PHI shot 52% (42 of 81) to NOP's 54%, 14 of 34 from three, and got to the line 18 times to NOP's 34. The glass went 30-40 against them. Maxey led with 33 (13 of 25, 3 of 10 from three); Melton added 17, Covington 12. Q4 was theirs, 33-22, the deficit cut from 21 to 10, but the other 3 periods went 102-81 against them. Batum's -21 in 14 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/01 @ BOS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 110, shooting 47 percent and 34 from three, 23 free throws a game; Tatum at 30 and Brown at 22 a game. Without Porziņģis (2 straight). 2 days' rest. Philadelphia comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 115, shooting 46 percent and 36 from three, 31 free throws a game; Embiid at 32 and Maxey at 28 a game. Without Oubre Jr. (10 straight), House Jr. (3 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the line, where Philadelphia takes 31 free throws a game to Boston's 23. Call it Boston 116, Philadelphia 113, Philadelphia keeping it close.
12/06 @ WAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Washington comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 129, shooting 49 percent and 37 from three, 25 free throws a game; Kuzma at 23 and Poole at 17 a game. It has lost the glass by 7 a night. 4 days' rest. Philadelphia comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 116, shooting 47 percent and 39 from three, 28 free throws a game; Maxey at 27 and Melton at 15 a game. Without Embiid (2 straight), Oubre Jr. (11 straight), House Jr. (4 straight). 4 days' rest.
So: Philadelphia wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Philadelphia has been plus-3 a night and Washington minus-7 and the defense, Philadelphia allowing 116 a night to Washington's 129. Call it Philadelphia 122, Washington 118, Washington keeping it close.
12/08 vs ATL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Philadelphia comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 126 a night and allowing 118, shooting 49 percent and 40 from three, 29 free throws a game; Embiid at 38 and Maxey at 30 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without House Jr. (5 straight). One day's rest. Atlanta comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 124, shooting 43 percent and 36 from three, 22 free throws a game; Young at 31 and Bogdanović at 18 a game. It has lost the glass by 7 a night. Without Johnson (5 straight), Fernando (3 straight). One day's rest.
So: Philadelphia wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Philadelphia has been plus-5 a night and Atlanta minus-7 and the line, where Philadelphia takes 29 free throws a game to Atlanta's 22. Call it Philadelphia 125, Atlanta 116.
12/11 vs WAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Philadelphia comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 125 a night and allowing 117, shooting 49 percent and 41 from three, 28 free throws a game; Embiid at 39 and Maxey at 30 a game. Without House Jr. (6 straight). 2 days' rest. Washington comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 126, shooting 49 percent and 35 from three, 25 free throws a game; Kuzma at 23 and Poole at 15 a game. That is 4 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 9 a night. Without Shamet (2 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: Philadelphia wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Philadelphia has been plus-1 a night and Washington minus-9 and the defense, Philadelphia allowing 117 a night to Washington's 126. Call it Philadelphia 126, Washington 115, Philadelphia by 11.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
NOPBI B. Ingram
CM C. McCollum
CZ C. Zeller
DD D. Daniels
HJ H. Jones
JA J. Alvarado
JH J. Hawkins
JV J. Valančiūnas
NM N. Marshall
VA Valanciunas
ZW Z. Williamson
PHIDM D. Melton
KM K. Martin
MB M. Bamba
MM M. Morris Sr.
NB N. Batum
PB P. Beverley
PR P. Reed
RC R. Covington
TH T. Harris
TM T. Maxey
NOP/PHI the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Williamson's 33 points on near-perfect shooting lift Pelicans past 76ers 124-114
NEW ORLEANS -- — Zion Williamson took advantage of Joel Embiid 's absence and punished the Philadelphia 76ers in the paint.
Williamson scored 33 points, making all but one of his 12 shots, and the New Orleans Pelicans beat the Sixers 124-114 on Wednesday night.
“He was great. He attacked the basket,” Pelicans coach Willie Green said. "Getting to the paint was something we were big on."
The 7-foot Embiid was ruled out shortly before tip-off because of an illness, forcing Philadelphia to manage without its leading scorer, who is averaging 32 points this season and also gives the Sixers a formidable defensive presence in the paint.
“We cannot use that as an excuse, and we won’t," Sixers coach Nick Nurse said. "What put us in a big hole is we didn’t go out and execute our defensive schemes the way we wanted to from the start of the game.”
When Williamson wasn't scoring in the paint, he was getting to the free throw line, where he also went 11 of 12.
He grabbed eight rebounds and added six assists, giving him at least 26 points and five assists in each of his past six games.
“He’s been knocking off some rust," Green said. "You can see he’s getting better and better as we progress. He’s starting to find his rhythm.
“We're putting him in different situations and he's thriving,” Green added. "So, it's fun to see."
New Orleans, meanwhile, got a key player back. Veteran guard CJ McCollum returned from a partially collapsed lung that had sidelined him for 12 games. He scored 20 points in 28 minutes, including a basket in the final minutes to help put away the game.
“I felt like a kid again," McCollum said. "After being injured, and the type of injury that it was, I’m just thankful I can play at a high level.”
Jonas Valanciunas scored 19, Jordan Hawkins added 16 and Brandon Ingram 15 for the Pelicans, who snapped a two-game skid.
Tyrese Maxey scored 33 points and De'Anthony Melton added 17 for the 76ers, who never led and trailed by as many as 16 points in the first quarter. New Orleans took its largest lead at 29 points when Herb Jones' layup made it 94-65 with 4:18 remaining in the third quarter.
The Sixers made a run with mostly reserves on the floor, cutting it to 16 before Nurse choose to put several starters back in for the final minutes, compelling Green to do the same.
“We need to become elite with the small nuances of the game, like tonight, late-game situations,” Williamson said. “We can't just give away 20-point leads like that.”
The game got as tight as 118-110 when Maxey set up Paul Reed for a short hook with 1:47 left.
“We’ve got some fighters on this team, so we were never going to give up,” Maxey said. “We were never going to concede defeat. That’s not in our blood.”
But McCollum responded by hitting a running floater, Valanciunas added a dunk and Williamson hit a layup as New Orleans pulled away for good.
The final box score initially had Williamson as a perfect 11 of 11 from field, which would have made him the first player in franchise history to do that. But it was changed after the game by the NBA, which deemed that Williamson was in the act of shooting when he lost a ball out of bounds while being guarded by Mo Bamba early in the fourth quarter.
“I was just shocked because I thought it was a foul,” Williamson said.
But he didn't seem too upset when he found out it officially went down as his lone missed shot.
“Got to take that one to chin,” Williamson said, laughing. “That's tough.”