Pelicans dissect the Warriors in Game 3 blowout: 3 takeaways

The Pelicans needed a big win to regain some momentum and move towards evening their series with the Warriors. They got it, and then some.

An intensely sloppy start for both teams belied the fact that Game 3 was heading towards an offensive explosion. The Pelicans regained their footing within the first quarter and just never stopped scoring.

Solomon Hill, all of all people, was drilling 3-pointers, Jrue Holiday was scoring at will and the Pelicans finished the first half with 10 made 3s. If it wasn’t for a 20-point second quarter by Klay Thompson the hole would have been a lot deeper than six points for the Warriors at halftime.

The Pelicans came out in the second half and opened the game up, building an enormous lead they’d never relinquish. Their defense was great (although the Warriors missed some shots they normally make) and their offensive execution was fantastic (although they made some shots they normally miss). The final score may not be indicative of what’s to come in the series, but this was a huge boost for the Pelicans and should go a long way towards extending this series.

Takeaways

Rajon Rondo was spectacular. In many ways, this was a typical Rondo game — low scoring, inefficient shooting, contributions literally everywhere else. Rondo finished with four points on 2-of-11 shooting, 21 assists and 10 rebounds. He was incredibly steady, keeping the ball moving to the right place, helping set the tone of passing up good shots to land a great one. He also set aside a few possessions for razzle-dazzle.

Jrue Holiday and Anthony Davis are the keys for the Pelicans’ hopes for an upset, but Rondo is the one making sure they are where they need to be.

Free throw disparity. The disparity in shooting fouls was a huge story, at least for frustrated Pelicans fans, after the first two games of this series. The huge margin of victory may distract from the fact that the Warriors again finished with an enormous edge — 26 free throw attempts for the Warriors to just 12 for the Pelicans. The Warriors were one of the best teams in the league at defending the rim without fouling during the regular season and they’ve done an excellent job in this series as well. Davis has attempted just seven free throws across three games, a free throw rate of just 0.099, compared to 0.409 during the regular season. The referees are the easiest target for that huge difference but it’s wrapped up in New Orleans offensive strategy and Golden State’s defensive execution as well. Still, if the Pelicans can start getting Davis to the line, things could shift even further in their favor.

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The Warriors are not likely to shoot this poorly again. The Pelicans did some nice things in this game, defending Curry and Durant well, goading Durant in trying to exploit his height advantage in isolations and post-ups against Holiday and E’Twaun Moore. Still, it’s hard to imagine the Warriors finishing another game in this series shooting less than 40 percent from the field and less than 30 percent on 3s. Early turnovers put them on the wrong foot and a few unlucky misses robbed them of their ability to bounce back with a patented run. Still, the Warriors are going to bounce back and New Orleans will have to be ready.