Anthony Davis putting up video-game numbers in a Pelicans loss is as depressing as ever

Once again, Anthony Davis put up superhuman numbers for New Orleans this season. And once again, in spite of said superhuman numbers, the Pelicans fell short, losing to the Brooklyn Nets, 126-121.

It’s become the recurring theme for a team that has taken every possible step backwards after sweeping Portland in the first round of the playoffs last season. New Orleans is now 14th in the West and four-and-a-half games out of the final playoff spot.

It’s also the most likely reason Davis will not be in New Orleans beyond 2020, assuming Pelicans brass doesn’t trade him before they risk losing him for nothing as an unrestricted free agent.

This time, Davis scored 34 points on 12-of-25 shooting from the field. This time, he grabbed 26 rebounds, dished out four assists, recorded three blocks, and picked up a steal. Basketball-Reference has no such stat line in NBA history on record. That’s because there are no such players like Davis in the history of basketball.

This time, unlike many others, Davis’ supporting cast stepped up offensively. Elfrid Payton had 25 points. Jrue Holiday put up 20, Julius Randle 21, and E’Twaun Moore scored 16. The difference? Defense, plus New Orleans’ bench scored five points compared to 55 by Brooklyn’s.

There is always something holding back this Pelicans team, and there always will be. Holiday is New Orleans’ second-best player, and he is as rugged a two-way guard as you’ll find in this league. But there is a drastic drop-off in talent from Davis to Holiday, then from Holiday to the rest of the roster. The Pelicans are not deep enough, nor do they have enough star power. But there are no such stars available for trade, and no such stars will sign in New Orleans next summer with Davis’ free agency looming a year later.

Davis has given his best for this Pelicans team. He averaged 29.6 points, 13.4 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 2.5 blocks, and two steals in the month of December. New Orleans lost six of nine games. New Year, same Pelicans.

It was yet another example of Davis’ best not being enough. That is a problem we’ve all known, and there’s no obvious solution to it.

Davis has scored 40 or more six times this season, and the Pelicans are 4-2 in games that he does. In fact, in games where The Brow scores at least 30 points, New Orleans is a respectable 8-6. But the Pelicans can’t rely on Davis to go for gold every night. They needed to find someone to pick up his slack years ago.

The trade rumors will only grow louder as the Pelicans slide further down the West standings. New Orleans still misses Nikola Mirotic, its floor-spacing forward who lit it up in the second half of the season and early this year before his ankle injury. Mirotic could add depth to the bench himself, or slide into the starting lineup and allow Randle to give that unit a boost.

But even if Mirotic returns, it’s slim pickings for New Orleans. They are what they are, and what they are is Anthony Davis and interchangeable parts. The Pelicans can’t swing a marquee trade because they have few assets other teams want. Some shooting would do wonders — they are in the bottom 10 in the league in three-point attempts per game — and give Davis more space to operate. Adding a single solitary playmaker to the bench to take the load off Holiday would also help.

But the kind of player they need most — an electrifying, playmaking point guard or wing — is not available. It’s the only thing that could save the New Orleans and Davis’ future in town. And as Davis’ numbers continue to pile higher and higher on a Pelicans team falling further and further from the playoffs, it’s becoming clearer that he will never have the help in New Orleans to take advantage of his prime.

What can they do to salvage Davis’ tenure? That is a question the Pelicans have never been able to answer, and surely never will.