As the Pelicans return to the Smoothie King Center, they have a sense of relief — every trip they spend away from it brings trouble.
New Orleans sits on a three-game losing streak since its last home appearance. In that span, the Pelicans fell to Philadelphia, New York and Washington and suffered fourth-quarter meltdowns throughout. There was no expectation for this team to steal a win from the 76ers, but something was left on the table when Anthony Davis missed the free throw that would’ve sent the game to overtime. Nonetheless, the two games that followed were much more concerning.