NEW ORLEANS –– While residents of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast prepare for the impending wrath of Winter Storm Juno, the Sixers are in sunny New Orleans, Louisiana, preparing for their second and final meeting with the Pelicans this season.

Unfortunately, when the two teams take the floor Monday night, Philadelphia will be without point guard and leader Michael Carter-Williams. The reigning Rookie of the Year is dealing with an upper respiratory infection that has bothered him for the better part of a week.

“He’s not feeling well at all, and he hasn’t been feeling well [since Wednesday],” said head coach Brett Brown at shoot-around Monday morning. “It’s just been a progressive illness that has finally caught up with him so we’ll sit him tonight.”

In his place, Larry Drew II will get the starting nod. The 6’2” rookie inked his second 10-day contract with the team on Monday morning.

“This is what I was bred for,” Drew said of the pressure of making his first NBA start. “I’m just going to keep doing what got me to this point in the first place. I feel like, just go out there, run the show, get my teammates open jumpers, pick up on defense, and everything else will take care of itself.”

In six games with the Sixers, he’s averaged 4.7 points (38.7 FG%) and 4.3 assists in 18.7 minutes per contest. In 20 minutes against the Grizzlies on Saturday, the 24-year-old notched nine points on 4-of-6 shooting to go along with four assists while committing just one turnover.

A pass-first point guard by nature, Drew has posted an assist ratio of 36.5, tied with seven-time All-Star Chris Paul for fourth in the league, and an assist percentage of 44.1%, tied for second among players averaging more than 15 minutes per game. Assist ratio is the number of a player’s own possessions that result in assists per 100 possessions, while assist percentage measures the proportion of a team’s assists that are attributed to a player while he is on the floor.

Kentucky Connection

When the Sixers and Pelicans met 10 days ago in Philadelphia, Anthony Davis sat due to a toe injury. The All-Star big man is back in the lineup and will pose an interesting challenge for Sixers rookie Nerlens Noel.

Since returning from the injury that cost him three games, Davis has averaged 26.0 points (47.4 FG%), 10.0 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 3.3 steals, and 2.0 blocks in 39.3 minutes per game.

In the teams’ January 16 meeting, Noel put together one of his best games of the season, going for 17 points (7/10 FG), 11 rebounds, two assists, five blocks, and two steals with zero turnovers. In the four games since, he’s averaged 9.3 points (44.1 FG%), 8.5 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 2.0 steals, and 1.0 blocks in 28.0 minutes per game.

“I think it’s going to be a good experience for me, going up against a player like him. With what he’s done in the league in his short career, it’s going to be a test,” Noel said of facing Davis. “I want to be out here playing against the best guys now, so coming into the offseason I know exactly what I need to work on. Being able to step up to a challenge like that, facing Marc Gasol, [Zach Randolph], all that, it’s a lot of experience that will come in handy down the road.”

Snow Day

As a result of wintery conditions that will affect Philadelphia beginning Monday and lasting through Tuesday, the Sixers have changed their travel plans, spending Monday night in New Orleans instead of flying back home immediately following their game against the Pelicans. Barring unforeseen changes, the team will depart New Orleans on Tuesday morning.