The Washington Wizards take on the New Orleans Pelicans at Smoothie King Center on Wednesday night.

The Wizards (11-6) jumped out to a stellar start that made them one of the surprises of the league early, but they've now dropped three of their past four games. Their most recent stumble occurred Monday night, when they fell to the Charlotte Hornets by a 109-103 score. Montrezl Harrell paced the Wizards with a 24-point, 18-rebound double-double. Bradley Beal delivered 18 points, nine assists, seven rebounds, one steal and one block. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope managed 17 points, three rebounds, one assist and four steals. Kyle Kuzma generated an 11-point, 13-rebound double-double that included five assists and one block.

The Wizards are projected to continue without Rui Hachimura (personal) for Wednesday's game.

The Pelicans (3-16) are in very dire straits already, as their record clearly indicates. Their most recent stumble, their fourth loss in the last five games, came against the Minnesota Timberwolves, which dropped them by a 110-96 score Monday night. Willy Hernangomez led the way with a 19-point, 11-rebound double-double that also included one steal. Nickeil Alexander-Walker posted 14 points, five boards and three assists. Jonas Valanciunas and Josh Hart produced matching 13-point tallies while pulling down six and five rebounds, respectively. Kira Lewis contributed 10 points, six assists, three boards and one steal.

The Pelicans will continue without Zion Williamson (foot) for Wednesday's contest.

Wednesday's game marks the second and final meeting between the teams this season. The Wizards own a 1-0 series lead, having notched a 105-100 win Nov. 15.