CJ McCollum making quick adjustment to Pelicans, joining NBA’s elite scorers since mid-February - Pelicans.com

A couple hours after New Orleans sealed one of its most impressive victories of the season Friday at Phoenix, Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado took to Twitter and wrote about his team, "Don't let us figure stuff out. That's going be scary."

The same could be said right now about teammate CJ McCollum. Since a rough New Orleans debut for the nine-year NBA veteran Feb. 10 in which he shot 6/21 from the field vs. Miami, the 30-year-old has been one of the league's most prolific scorers, tallying 30-plus points in four of five games. The lone exception was his 23-point outing vs. Toronto, a game New Orleans won by 30 and didn't need him to play deep into the fourth quarter.

Since McCollum's 15-point night against the Heat, the shooting guard ranks fourth in the NBA in scoring (minimum three games played), averaging 31.8 points. He's shooting 58 percent from the field and 47 percent on three-pointers. His contributions also have gone well beyond putting the ball in the basket at a high clip, with averages of 5.8 rebounds, 5.2 assists and a team-best 1.4 steals during the handful of games.

"He's been great," Pelicans head coach Willie Green said after Friday's 117-102 win, his team's fourth straight on the road. "All of the things we knew he could do, he's doing them."

"My goodness, he's amazing out there," forward Naji Marshall said, when asked about McCollum. "I see it with (Brandon Ingram). Now there's two of them out there. It's crazy. It's unbelievable to play with him, and I think it's going to be great for us."

McCollum's 32-point, six-rebound, four-assist performance at Phoenix also featured Ingram racking up 28 points, highlighted by 10/11 foul shooting. McCollum made 11 trips of his own to the charity stripe, with the one-two punch giving the NBA's third-ranked defense trouble for extended stretches.

"It's going to take those two guys setting the table," Green said of McCollum and Ingram, "moving the basketball, and then when the ball comes back to them, having a point-five mentality (to make a quick decision)."

"I thought we played off each other well," McCollum said of his tandem with Ingram, who dished out seven assists. "He was aggressive. He played a complete game. Got to the basket, made the right plays, got to his (mid-range jumper) and did what he wanted out there. I told him, be who you are. Embrace your greatness. Show it every night."

McCollum also appears to be quickly developing a pick-and-roll connection with Jonas Valanciunas (18 points, 17 rebounds at Phoenix), setting up the formidable screen-setting center for layups and paint touches.

"It's a huge benefit when you have a player like CJ who draws so much attention," Green said of that combination. "He's driving, he can isolate, he's a really good passer."

"I said it earlier, it will take time," Valanciunas said of the necessary in-season adjustments by McCollum and the Pelicans. "It's coming. He's a super-talented player. There's no doubt he's going to play great."

That's been the case in every game McCollum has played lately. He's still getting to know his teammates, saying Friday that he prefers to lead by example, particularly as he remains relatively unfamiliar to them off the court. But Friday's 15-point win over the defending West champions provided encouragement that the Pelicans are making strides each night, as they try to move up the standings.

"We're getting used to each other, obviously," McCollum said. "The way I play is different, so we're kind of figuring each other out slowly. All in all, I like the progression that everybody is bringing to the table."