With the return of all-star point guard Jrue Holiday in the New Orleans Pelicans roster, the team managed hard-fought back-to-back wins for the first time this 2016-2017 NBA season. The Pels are now 4-2 since starting the season 0-8. Holiday recorded 21 points and nine assists in his second game and has changed the fate of the Pelicans who are already desperate to get a win.
The New Orleans Pelicans posted a 121-116 overtime victory against the Charlotte Bobcats and rallied from being down by as many as 11 points in the fourth quarter to for OT and win the game, via Nba.com. Before this game, Holiday's season debut was against the Portland Trailblazers after missing the team's first 12 games to attend to his ailing wife. Holiday also posted 21 points in this game and added seven assists in a 101-113 victory over the Blazers.
In his post-game interview, Holiday stated that he was thrilled and excited about his first game and said he felt good for helping the Pelicans win over the Blazers, according to ESPN. This also marked the 800th career game for the Pelicans head coach Alvin Gentry. New Orleans won its first back-to-back home games after they started 0-5 in their own home court.
Holiday missed consecutive games to take care of his wife who had to undergo a brain surgery and also gave birth to their first child. The point guard reportedly reached out to coaches and studied the team's play while he was away. This could be the reason why he was in good condition upon his comeback, helping his team achieve their much-needed victory.
The Pelicans are plagued with injuries and having Holiday back in the lineup definitely uplifted the team to another level. Coach Gentry added that Holiday has a huge role in what they do and makes the whole team better. His teammates respect him and were so glad to see that he is back.
The team and the whole organization supported Holiday and his family during their trying times and it inspired Holiday to give back and fight for his Pelicans team the way they supported him. Having Holiday back in the lineup made the Pelicans more competitive, taking some load off their all-star center Anthony Davis while the team waits for other starters to heal from their injuries. The Pelicans are still missing the services of key players Tyreke Evans and Quincy Pondexter.
