Firing a head coach normally signals the end of hope for a season, but the New Orleans Pelicans have 70 games left to turn things around with James Borrego at the helm.

They have the confidence that there is plenty of time to get back into the playoffs.

The Pelicans are sitting at 2-10 and in last place in the NBA. The Western Conference is tough, but the 4-8 Utah Jazz are the current threshold to pass to get into the Play-in tournament.

"Don't give up on us. That's my message," said Trey Murphy when asked what he wanted to say to the fans. "Still show support. We can turn this thing around." Borrego had the same message when asked the question as well.

Murphy isn't just saying what he thinks people want to hear, either. He's speaking from experience.

During his rookie season, 2021/2022, New Orleans started just 3-16 before finishing 36-46 as the No. 9 seed and fought into the playoffs as a Play-in team. They pushed the No. 1 seed Phoenix Suns to six games.

This year's roster has massively underperformed compared to preseason expectations. Part of that has been due to the injuries to Zion Williamson and Jordan Poole, but the problems ran deeper than that. That's why the move was made at the top.

The big losses have been bad, but the Pelicans have also had a handful of competitive games go their way.

A couple of the losses can also be tracked back to one really bad and three competitive quarters, with that bad one proving too much to overcome.

For example, New Orleans is No. 14 in the NBA in score differential for the fourth quarter, but No. 29 in the third quarter, so it doesn't matter.

It's been that inconsistency that has killed them this year.

There is enough talent on this roster, when healthy, to win games. Borrego feels like he has plenty to work with to get them back into the playoffs, despite their poor start.

When asked if he felt like he could really change this season by stepping into this larger role, he had a confident, lengthy response:

"We're going to try like hell. Absolutely, we can. No doubt. There's plenty of time. It's not ideal because of [the start], but this group can definitely move forward. There are some real foundational pieces, character pieces and talent in the house. Now we've got to put it all together on the fly, but there's no doubt this season can turn. I'm optimistic. That's how I live my life, and that's how I'm going to roll. Like, we can do this, but we've got to do it together. And we've got to do it with a pride that this city represents."

Only time will tell just how much can actually change with a midseason change, but the sense of optimism from before the year began still exists on Airline Dr.