New Orleans Pelicans — Brooklyn Nets 111:145: result and stats

The New Orleans Pelicans return to the Smoothie King Center on a three-game skid, still stinging from the most lopsided regular-season defeat in franchise history. The Brooklyn Nets arrive in town carrying a three-game road slide of their own and a roster held together with tape. Two teams desperate for a reset meet in a game that matters more for morale than for the standings.

A historic low and a fragile response

New Orleans is 4-7 and 11th in the Western Conference, but the record undersells the turmoil. The Pelicans were dismantled 138-87 by Golden State, a 51-point margin that broke the franchise’s regular-season record for futility. Head coach Jamahl Mosley did not mince words afterward, calling the performance unacceptable and acknowledging his team was punched in the mouth twice in consecutive nights. The defensive numbers are alarming: New Orleans is allowing 122.4 points per game, the third-most in the league, and its 118.1 defensive rating ranks 26th. The three-point shooting has cratered to 32.5 percent as a team, and the offence has too often dictated the defence rather than the other way around. A return home against a short-handed opponent is the kind of soft landing the Pelicans need, but the margin for another flat performance is gone.

Zion’s rest and a crowded injury list

The Pelicans will again be without Zion Williamson, who is listed out for rest after sitting the second night of a back-to-back. Trey Murphy III is out with bilateral patellar tendinopathy, Yves Missi is sidelined with a knee issue, and Trendon Watford is unavailable with an ankle sprain. Dejounte Murray continues his long recovery from a ruptured Achilles and remains out. That leaves New Orleans thin in the frontcourt and without its most dynamic wing scorer. Derik Queen has shown flashes, including a team-high 16 points in the loss to the Warriors, but the rookie cannot be expected to carry the offensive load alone. The Pelicans will need Jordan Poole and Herb Jones to provide steadier shot creation and perimeter defence, and the bench must avoid the kind of collapse that turned the Golden State game into a rout.

Brooklyn’s road woes and a patchwork rotation

The Nets are 2-8 and 13th in the Eastern Conference, and their three-game road losing streak is part of a broader pattern of struggle away from home. Brooklyn went 8-33 on the road last season, and the early returns in this campaign suggest little has changed. The injury report is just as punishing: Cam Thomas remains out with a left hamstring strain, Michael Porter Jr. is sidelined with lower back tightness, Haywood Highsmith is out following knee surgery, and Egor Demin is dealing with a leg issue. Day’Ron Sharpe has been managing a glute contusion and is day-to-day, leaving Nic Claxton as the lone reliable interior presence. The Nets have leaned on Noah Clowney for extended minutes, and his 31-point outburst against the Knicks showed what he can provide, but Brooklyn’s offence has been uneven without Thomas and Porter to stretch defences.

Head-to-head history and the balance of the matchup

The Nets hold a 26-23 edge in the all-time regular-season series, and the teams split their two meetings last season. Brooklyn won the first encounter 119-101 in early December, while New Orleans answered with a 116-113 victory in mid-January behind 34 points from Trey Murphy III. Murphy’s absence removes the player who torched Brooklyn in that win, but the Pelicans still have home-court advantage and a healthier overall rotation than the Nets. The chances favour New Orleans at 64 percent, with Brooklyn at 36, and the expected combined score sits around 231 points. The estimate has barely moved since the line opened, reflecting a steady view of the matchup: the Pelicans are more likely to win, but the Nets are not without a path if their young wings can punish a porous New Orleans defence.

What is at stake

For New Orleans, this is about stopping the bleed before a five-game homestand turns into another lost stretch. The Pelicans have changed coaches, reshaped the roster, and still find themselves answering the same questions about competitiveness and identity. A win would not solve the defensive problems, but it would give a frustrated home crowd a reason to stay engaged. For Brooklyn, a road win would snap a skid and offer proof that the Nets can compete without their top scorers. Both teams are vulnerable, both are short-handed, and both know the other is the most beatable opponent they have seen in weeks. The game may turn on which supporting cast finds its footing first, and whether New Orleans can finally protect its home floor.

Preview prepared from the match data · 11 November