The healthy New Orleans Pelicans host a struggling Washington Wizards squad on Sunday night in their return home from a six-game road trip.
New Orleans split their six-game road trip evenly at 3-3. Now, they return home for the first time since February 24 for a matchup with the Washington Wizards.
The Pelicans are now 20-45 and playing their best basketball of the season with a healthy roster. They will be heavily favored to win this game, as these two teams are trying to accomplish opposite things.
The Wizards are 16-46 and do not hold their own first round pick, so their front office is not necessarily as concerned with winning right now. They've lost their last seven games.
Here is a quick rundown of important information to know before the game tips off on Sunday:
When is New Orleans Pelicans vs. Washington Wizards
Date: Sunday, March 8, 2026
Time: 6:00 PM CT
Location: Smoothie King Center (New Orleans, LA)
How to Watch New Orleans Pelicans vs. Washington Wizards
Streaming: Pelicans+, NBA League Pass, NBA TV
TV Channel: Gulf Coast Sports & Entertainment Network
Local Radio: WWL 870 AM
New Orleans Pelicans vs. Washington Wizards Betting Lines
Moneyline: NO -470
Spread: NO -11.5
Over/Under: 245.5
New Orleans Pelicans vs. Washington Wizards Projected Starting Lineups
Pelicans: Dejounte Murray, Trey Murphy, Saddiq Bey, Herb Jones, Zion Williamson
Wizards: Trae Young, Bilal Coulibaly, Tre Johnson, Julian Reese, Alex Sarr
New Orleans Pelicans vs. Washington Wizards Injury Updates
New Orleans is carrying a fully healthy roster into this game. The only people out are the two-way players that are not needed on the NBA squad right now. This will be the first time that New Orleans is fully healthy at home in a long while.
Dejounte Murray had just returned from his Achilles injury on the last game before they left, but Trey Murphy was dealing with a shoulder issue from before the All-Star Break.
Washington is a different story. Anthony Davis, Kyshawn George, D'Angelo Russell, Tristan Vukcevic, Jamir Watkins and Cam Whitmore have all been ruled out.
An interesting name missing is Trae Young, who just debuted with the team in their last game and logged just 19 minutes on the court. Many thought that Young would not return until next year. That is not the case.
Alex Sarr is also returning to action for the first time in exactly a month. He's enjoyed a bit of a breakout season when healthy this year.
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