Mavs-Pelicans preview: Another matchup without Zion Williamson

It’s time for another meeting between the Mavericks and New Orleans Pelicans, which means another opportunity missed.

Once again, Maverick fans will not get to see a Luka Dončić matchup with Zion Williamson.

The Pelicans’ big man has been out for a month with a hamstring issue and it extends an injury-riddled career for the No. 1 draft pick in 2019. It also extends the time in which he hasn’t played against the Mavericks and, more specifically, against Luka.

Williamson has played only three times against the Mavericks and just twice when Dončić was playing. The last time was nearly two years ago, Feb. 12, 2021, when Williamson had 36 points against the Mavericks, but Dončić trumped him with 46 points, eight rebounds and 12 assists.

Of more importance is the fact that this game provides a golden opportunity for the Mavericks to scoop up another home win against a reeling opponent. They took care of Detroit on Monday and now the Pelicans coming in with a nine-game losing streak, most recently dropping a 122-113 decision at Denver on Tuesday.

They have tumbled down the Western Conference standings to 10^th after being tied for second before their skid. It has coincided with the injury to Williamson.

Against the Nuggets, the Pelicans surrendered a massive triple-double to Nikola Jokic in that game (26 points, 18 rebounds, 15 assists) and also gave up 44.4 percent three-point shooting to the Nuggets.

The shooting night Denver had perhaps is good news for Tim Hardaway Jr., who is in need of a tonic for his shot, which has been off-kilter recently.

He is 5-of-26 (19.2 percent) in the last four games.

“Timmy’s trying to do everything to help the team,” coach Jason Kidd said. “And that’s the beauty of Tim right now. We would like him to make all the shots. But right now, they’re just in and out. That’s the life of a shooter.”

The confidence factor, however, is something that cannot waver for a shooter and Hardaway always will take shots knowing that the next one is always going in. And there are other aspects of the game in which Hardaway is contributing.

“I think everybody still supports (him),” Kidd said. “You look at the defensive end, we’re asking him to guard bigger guys and rebound for us and he’s doing that. He cares about the team. Sometimes frustration sets in but as a coach or a teammate you like to see that because he cares.”

Here are a few other things to watch for when the Mavericks take on the Pelicans Thursday night:

• Even without Williamson, the Pelicans have a pair of capable scorers in C.J. McCollum and Brandon Ingram, who combine to average more than 41 points per game. They also have one of the most under-appreciated big men in the league in Jonas Valanciunas, who has played all 52 games and averages 14.5 points and 9.6 rebounds.
• In spite of the Nuggets’ hot shooting on Tuesday, opponents shoot only 34.4 percent from three-point land against the Pelicans, the best defensive number in the league when it comes to limiting the long ball.
• The Mavericks will be without Christian Wood (thumb) and Maxi Kleber (hamstring).
• Though he has been in and out of the rotation all season, JaVale McGee got an extended run early against Detroit and was a primary reason why the Mavericks were able to stay afloat when nobody else except Luka Dončić was producing against the Pistons. “We got in foul trouble,” coach Jason Kidd said. “And JaVale came in and gave us a spark in the first half. I thought JaVale was a big part of our success to keep us in the game in the first half.” McGee ended up with eight points and three rebounds in 10 minutes, and with New Orleans having capable big men like Jonas Valanciunas, Larry Nance Jr. and Willy Hernangomez, McGee could be in for more run against the Pelicans.
• NEW ORLEANS PELICANS (26-26) at DALLAS MAVERICKS (27-25)
• When: 7:30 p.m., Thursday.
• Where: American Airlines Center, Dallas.
• TV: Bally’s Sports Southwest.
• Radio:1 FM, 99.1 FM Zona MX (Spanish).

Twitter: @ESefko