Watch: Pelicans blow huge lead in final seconds
New Orleans defeated Memphis in overtime Wednesday, but the Pelicans never should have gotten there.
The Pelicans had a six-point lead with 11 seconds left against a Grizzlies team that had no timeouts. Plus, Trey Murphy III still had one free throw left to shoot. Somehow, Memphis forced overtime.
First, Murphy missed his second free throw. The Grizzlies secured the rebound and pushed the ball to Tyus Jones, who made a ridiculous wraparound pass to find Dillon Brooks in the corner, who made a three-pointer while being fouled by Herb Jones.
Normally, that's a four-point play opportunity. But with only 4.7 seconds left, Brooks missed the and-one intentionally - but got called for a lane violation going after his own rebound.
Still, this should have been a pretty safe lead. That is, until Brandon Ingram committed an offensive foul on the inbounds play, thanks to some excellent acting from Jones. New Orleans gave a take foul on Desmond Bane, who made his first freebie then purposely missed the second.
On the rebound, Larry Nance Jr. was called for a very questionable foul on Jaren Jackson Jr., who hooked his arm as he went for the rebound. When Jackson made both freebies, he forced a highly improbable
This could have been an absolute disaster, dropping New Orleans to 40-40 and a tie with the Timberwolves, who they play in Game 82. But all the Pelicans who made mistakes redeemed themselves in the extra period. Murphy hit two three-pointers, both assisted by Ingram, who had two steals and four dimes, including an alley-oop to Nance. Jones scored three points and blocked a three-pointer for the third time in the game.
New Orleans had to play an extra five minutes, but they ultimately secured the win. The only damage was to their players' tired legs - and their fans' cardiac health.
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