1) With six-plus weeks remaining in the NBA regular season, New Orleans (26-34) is three games out of eighth place in the Western Conference standings. The Pelicans will try to get closer to No. 8 Memphis (29-31) in Week 21, which features a four-game slate, starting and ending with Tuesday and Sunday matchups vs. Minnesota. In between, New Orleans visits Dallas on Wednesday, then hosts Miami on Friday. The games against the Mavericks and Heat are both on ESPN.
2) The Pelicans will be either 3.5 or 2.5 games back of Memphis after Monday’s slate of games, because the Grizzlies visit Atlanta at 6:30 p.