A look at three key numbers related to Sunday’s game at Crypto.com Arena between New Orleans and the LA Clippers (8:30 p.m. Central, Bally Sports New Orleans, NBA TV, ESPN Radio New Orleans 100.3 FM):
2: New Orleans magic number to clinch a spot in the Western Conference play-in tournament, which is scheduled for April 12-15. The Pelicans need any combination of their wins and Lakers losses adding up to two to get the job done, which means it could happen as soon as Sunday (the Lakers host Denver this afternoon in the same building). If New Orleans doesn’t wrap up a play-in berth today, Tuesday’s schedule features the Pelicans (34-43) closing their current four-game road trip in Sacramento, while the Lakers (31-46) have a difficult matchup at Phoenix, in a rematch of the 2021 NBA playoffs.