The Pelicans are about to find out where the work really stands.
After six days of a training camp that Jeremiah Fears described as “A lot more competitive, a lot more teaching,” New Orleans opens its preseason Tuesday night in Tulsa against the Oklahoma City Thunder, giving Jamahl Mosley his first game look since being hired in May to steer a team that has stumbled over the past two seasons.
Mosley has spent camp hammering defense and accountability, and now he gets a live exam against one of the league’s toughest bars to clear. The Thunder won the championship two seasons ago and reached the Western Conference Finals last season, and Mosley is treating that matchup as exactly what he wants early in the preseason: a clean read on how his group responds when the opponent isn’t wearing the same jersey.
“(This game) gives you a real test to be able to see what you’ve done,” Mosley said. “What you’ve put in and what feels good against your own team is great. (But) going against a different opponent where you will see different coverages and they are guarding you a little different is all great to see in real time.”
That’s the point for Mosley. It’s less about the name on the other side and more about the habits he’s trying to install.
“I think it’s a great opportunity to continue to improve to see where we stand,” Mosley said. “The opponent shouldn’t matter.
It has got to be about us and what we are trying to accomplish and what we are trying to improve on. As the preseason goes along and the training camp continues, I think that’s the most important piece for us.
It is great that we get to go against a different opponent, but it’s going to be about us and our progress.”
The Pelicans head into the opener healthy, and Mosley plans to play everybody. For a roster that has been grinding through defense-heavy practices and plenty of trash talk, the chance to face someone else is a welcome change.
Center Karlo Matkovic said it plainly: “I haven’t played an NBA game since April, so I’m really excited,” he said.
Facing Oklahoma City only adds to that. The Thunder have built their identity on defense, which lines up with what Mosley is trying to build in New Orleans.
“They are known as a defensive team, but it’s an NBA game,” Matkovic said. “Every game is different.
It’s a good test, for sure. We as a team, we want to start on defense like coach Mosley wants.
And we want to get more wins and get back on track.”
For Fears, the value of Tuesday night is simple: get the group in game speed, see the rotation pieces together, and keep leaning into the competitive edge Mosley has emphasized since camp opened.
“This is a pretty big test for us,” Fears said about OKC. “Obviously the guys aren’t going to play a lot, but just being able to see what we look like in the minutes we do play together will be big. We’re going out there and having fun and competing.
“(We want to show) our competitive edge and how we go out there and compete. No matter who is on the floor, no matter who we’re playing against.”
Tuesday is the first of four preseason games for New Orleans. The Pelicans go to Miami on Thursday, then to Dallas on Oct. 14 before closing preseason at home against Washington on Oct.
- The regular season follows on Oct. 21, when the Indiana Pacers visit the Smoothie King Center.
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