And on this roadtrip, where the Jazz will face the Pelicans once more on Monday night, it was really, really important for the Jazz decision makers to find a way to finagle a loss against the Pelicans.

The Utah Jazz have hit the cellar of the Western Conference. Zion Williamson highlighted a 24-point, 14-rebound performance with an array of thunderous dunks during a dominant fourth-quarter stint, and the New Orleans Pelicans beat the Utah Jazz 136-123 on Friday night to open a two-game set.

The New Orleans Pelicans are struggling, sitting 15th in the Western Conference and nearly out of playoff contention. Zion Williamson’s continued absences have drawn strong criticism from six-time NBA champion Scottie Pippen,

Zion Williamson was suspended one game by the Pelicans for arriving late to the team’s flight to Philadelphia, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania . He’ll miss New Orleans’ Friday night game against the 76ers as a result.

Via Pelicans: “Pelicans have suspended forward Zion Williamson for one game for a violation of team policies, announced today by Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations David Griffin. Zion will miss tonight’s game against the Philadelphia 76ers and will rejoin the team tomorrow.”