On April 30, Beijing time, the NBA playoffs continued. In the just-concluded Western Conference Focus War, the Pelicans became the second team to be swept after the Suns, and compared to the Suns' Big Three "standing out", the Pelicans are in a more awkward situation, they have not scored more than 100 points in four games, becoming the first team in the NBA in the past 8 years to be eliminated from the playoffs with an average score of less than 100 per game.
In this game, the Pelicans sat at home to face the Thunder, and before the game, the Thunder held a 3-0 lead to get the match point, thinking that considering that the Pelicans' home tickets were only $7, the Thunder would choose to release the water and bring the game back to their home court to earn a wave of ticket money. But even if the Thunder shot 35 of 82 from the field, with a shooting rate of only 42.7%, the Pelicans still failed to seize the opportunity and could only watch the Thunder complete the sweep of the Pelicans 97-89.
In terms of statistics, the Pelicans played the worst game of the series today, the team's core Ingram started 38 minutes and shot 2 of 14, with 8 points, 4 rebounds and 6 assists, under his leadership, the Pelicans team's shooting rate was only 37.6%, and the three-point shooting rate was as low as 23.5%. Such a miserable game made Zion sit on the bench and was reluctant to leave for a long time.
In fact, for the Pelicans, they could have avoided a sweep, and even had the luxury of upsetting the Thunder to advance to the semifinals, but with Zion suffering a hamstring strain in the finale, the Pelicans also had to accept the reality of Ingram's single-core leadership. Without Zion, the absolute core, the Pelicans lost in the first-round series, especially after suffering three consecutive defeats in the first three rounds, the outside world once hoped that Zion could return to the line of fire to save the crumbling team, but Zion said that if the Pelicans can survive the first round, then he will return at some point in the playoffs.
In all fairness, it's unknown whether a Pelican with Zion can make it to the Thunder, let alone a Pelican without Zion. The latter's refusal to play and his exemption card undoubtedly made an entire season's efforts come to naught, and he ended up sitting on the bench and watching the team go out in the first round.
It's worth mentioning that this isn't the first time Zion has refused to play at a crucial moment. During the competition for a play-off spot last season, Zion refused to play due to injury, and now he once again chose to abandon the team, and the act of voluntary reimbursement also made him infamous by public opinion, and the 5-year 190 million maximum salary renewal contract has also become one of the largest garbage contracts in the NBA.