Pelicans Set to Soar or Lakers to Shine at Smoothie King Center

As the New Orleans Pelicans prepare to host the Los Angeles Lakers at the Smoothie King Center, fans are eager for what promises to be an electrifying matchup. The Pelicans have been showing a strong performance trend, coming off a recent victory against the Utah Jazz with a score of 112-105. This win was marked by their impressive field goal percentage of 55 percent and their dominance in points in paint, scoring 62 compared to Utah's 42.

The team's efficiency game score from that match was an outstanding 96.5, bolstered by their ability to convert turnovers into points – they scored 17 points off turnovers. Their assist-to-turnover ratio stood at an impressive 1.93, indicating a disciplined approach to ball handling and distribution.

However, it wasn't all smooth sailing in their previous games; the Pelicans faced a nail-biting overtime loss against the Memphis Grizzlies with a final score of 115-116. Despite leading for over half of the game time and having a bigger lead than Memphis at any point during the game, they fell short by just one point. Their second-chance points were significant at 19 due to their offensive rebounding efforts.

Against Houston Rockets, another close encounter saw them trailing slightly with a final scoreboard reading 104-106 for Houston. The Pelicans managed an effective field goal percentage of 51 percent but struggled from beyond the arc with only a three-point shooting percentage of 26.

With these trends in mind, fans can expect New Orleans Pelicans' focus on maintaining high efficiency inside scoring while working on improving perimeter shooting against Los Angeles Lakers' defense.

The upcoming game is scheduled for January first at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans – tip-off is set according to Central Time Zone standards. Fans can catch all action live on BSNO (channel number:676-4) or follow along if they're supporting from afar through SportsNet LA (channel number:691).