The Pelicans dropped their opening game of the restarted NBA season, 106-104, as forward Brandon Ingram's three-point attempt as time expired rimmed out, sealing the victory for the Utah Jazz.
"The bottom line is that I don’t think it should have come down to that, and we let a golden opportunity slip away," Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry said. "As I said to the guys, it’s something that we have to put behind us because in a few days we’re going to play another team, a very good team, in the Clippers. We got to put that one behind us and then move on.”
New Orleans led the Utah Jazz by as much as 16 during the matchup, but some key errors including 21 turnovers allowed the Jazz to close the deficit.
"The offense is not what I’m worried about. The last three plays on the defensive end with a foul on me, me digging in on the help side was [my mistake], and being the low man on the defensive side was [my mistake], so [those are] things I can fix, and the outcome of that game would have been a little bit different, it wouldn’t have come down to that three,” Ingram said.
Ingram scored a game-high 23 points and JJ Redick added 21 points off the bench.
Rookie forward Zion Williamson scored 13 points while being limited to 15 minutes of action.
"They weren't holding me back," Williamson said. "Yeah, I did want to be out there, but we’re just working my way back into my flow. That's all it is.”