Preseason: Pelicans v Wizards By Dylan Dunn October 17, 2026 Down to the Wire, In the Blender So, it's the final preseason game, which usually means it is rotational players playing, but not in this one. The Pelicans beat the Wizards 107-106 at the Smoothie King Center, and the last minute was somehow stressful even though the games don't count yet. New Orleans finishes preseason 3-1. That's a good way to head into the real season. Head coach Jamahl Mosley played his starters in real minutes for three quarters, so it actually felt like a real game for a while. Then the benches came in and things got chaotic. First Quarter: New Orleans Sets the Tone The Pelicans came out looking like they actually cared about this one. Herb Jones was aggressive right away, and the defense was locked in from the start. Pelicans player: Saddiq Bey. He was basically on fire all night and finished with 19 points in only 17 minutes. Wizards player: Kyshawn George, who had 14 points on 5-7 shooting. Pelicans play of the quarter: Jeremiah Fears had a filthy crossover on Alex Sarr which led to Anthony Davis closing in the space and made it easy for Fears to throw a lob to Yves Missi. Second Quarter: Saddiq Bey Goes Off Bey scored 13 of the Pelicans' 56 first-half points and single-handedly dragged them to the halftime lead. One time Bilal Coulibaly trapped him with the shot clock dying and Bey had zero options left, so he just threw up a crazy contested fadeaway... and drilled it anyway. He was not missing. Pelicans player: Saddiq Bey, obviously. 7-11 from the field and 3-5 from three. Wizards player: AJ Dybantsa, who had 12 points before he got hurt. Pelicans play of the quarter: That fadeaway over Coulibaly. It was honestly a terrible shot from a basketball standpoint, and it went in anyway, which is what happens when somebody is that hot. Also not a fun moment: the Wizards' No. 1 pick AJ Dybantsa got bumped by Zion Williamson while shooting and rolled his ankle. He left the game and nobody announced what the injury was. Hopefully everything is okay and wishing him a speedy recovery. Third Quarter: Jeremiah Fears Playing With No Fear Jeremiah Fears was really good in this one. He started all three preseason games and looks like he belongs out there. The Pelicans held the Wizards to about 35% shooting during this stretch, which is a big deal because defense was a problem for them last year. Anthony Davis was also everywhere, bothering shots and switching onto everybody. Pelicans player: Jeremiah Fears. 14 points, 5 assists and 3 steals. Really impressive preseason from him. Wizards player: Anthony Davis, who had 14 points, 11 rebounds and 2 blocks. Pelicans play of the quarter: Saddiq Bey gets the steal off a tipped pass and throws the lob up to Karlo Matkovic. Fourth Quarter: Hometown Hero Saves the Day This game got way closer than it should have. The starters sat and the Wizards' deep bench guys almost stole it. Down two, they trapped the Pelicans in a corner near midcourt and New Orleans almost turned it over like three times before finally calling timeout. Genuinely scary for a preseason game. Pelicans player: Jaron Pierre Jr. He had two steals and then hit the free throws that won it. Wizards player: Alex Sarr, 12 points and 9 rebounds in 26 minutes. Pelicans play of the quarter: With 1.4 seconds left and the lead down to two, rookie Jaron Pierre Jr. stepped to the line and made both free throws to seal it. Right before that, Washington got called for a charging foul, so the comeback was basically dead anyway. But still the free throws were clutch. Here’s the Mix Fromm the Blender The Pelicans forced 23 turnovers. Five different guys had multiple steals: Fears had 3, and Bey, Pierre, Trey Murphy and Bryce McGowens each had 2. That's a lot of hands in passing lanes. 62-42 in points in the paint. They just lived at the rim. The bench was the best part of the whole preseason. Jordan Poole was +45, Derik Queen was +40, and Saddiq Bey was +33. Bennedict Mathurin, who they signed in September, had 10 points in 17 minutes. Solid pickup so far. Dejounte Murray didn't play again because of his toe. The Pelicans open the real season Wednesday. After a 3-1 preseason with the bench playing like that, it's hard not to be a little excited.