The New Orleans Pelicans fought but were unable to overcome 25 turnovers as they dropped to 0-3 at the NBA 2K26 Summer League with a [93-86 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers](https://www.nba.com/pelicans/game/1522500044/box-score). The Pels have now lost nine consecutive games in Vegas dating back to an 89-83 victory over the Charlotte Hornets on July 13, 2023.
New Orleans got off to a slow start, scoring just two points in the first five minutes. The Pelicans missed 11 of their first 12 shot attempts, failing to convert on several second chance opportunities. Yves Missi and Derik Queen went a combined 1-9 in the frame.
They didn’t get their first assist until Lester Quinones found a streaking Jeremiah Fears for a dunk in transition. That ended a stretch of nearly 37 minutes of game action without an assist, going back to the mid-point of the second quarter on Saturday. Six turnovers in the period continued to expose the Pelicans’ problems taking care of the basketball.
But late in the quarter Queen got it going. Starting with a hook shot over Yang Hansen just before the end of the period, the rookie out of Maryland scored 9 of the Pelicans’ next 12 points to give New Orleans a 21-19 lead. Queen was a solid 4-of-8 from the floor in the first half, contributing 11 points and five rebounds.
He contributed on the defensive end as well, picking up a steal and a block. On the negative side, he had five turnovers in the half. Queen and Fears combined for 10 of New Orleans’ 16 first half giveaways.
Portland and New Orleans traded blows until Queen returned to the bench with the Pelicans trailing by two. The Blazers closed the half on a 24-13 run to take a 43-34 advantage into the locker room.
The Pelicans cut down the turnovers and ramped up the offense in the third quarter. New Orleans opened the second half on a 16-7 run to tie the score at 50 with 4:44 remaining in the period. Quinones’ layup just before the buzzer allowed the Pels to take a four point lead into the final quarter.
Things got tense with 5:43 to play as Fears and AJ Hoggard got into a mild skirmish with Portland’s Sidy Cissoko that resulted in ejections for all three. Portland would retake the lead at 76-73 following back-to-back three pointers.
Queen and Hansen both re-entered the game with 4:24 on the clock and Portland in the midst of a 10-3 outburst. New Orleans, now down by five, couldn’t take care of the basketball. The Pelicans’ final turnover of the night led to free throws on the other end. The Blazers extended their lead to eight and didn’t look back from there.
New Orleans lost on its best shooting night so far. The Pelicans shot 40.3 percent from the field, compared to 39.7 for Portland. However, they made just 3 of their 18 three-point attempts.
For the second straight game Antonio Reeves led the Pelicans in scoring with 18 points (5-11 FG, 0-4 3PA). Derik Queen finished with his third consecutive double-double, scoring 17 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Keion Brooks had his best game so far with 15 points, and Fears contributed 14 before his ejection.
Yves Missi struggled to score once again, going 1-of-11 from the field. Through three games he’s shooting 32.1%. That’s a significant drop from his 46.2% in four games last summer. He did contribute a game-high four blocks on the defensive end.
Portland also had four players in double figures. Rayan Rupert scored a game-high 24 points on only 12 shots. DJ Canton scored 20 on just nine attempts. Caleb Love had 17 points, 12 rebounds, and five assists, while Hansen finished with 15 points and a pair of blocks.
The Pelicans have less than 24 hours to make their adjustments as they prepare to face the Oklahoma City Thunder at 8:30 pm on Wednesday night. The Thunder is one of eight teams with a perfect 3-0 record.