After suffering their worst regular-season loss in franchise history on Monday, the New Orleans Pelicans followed that up with a horrendous 145-111 defeat to the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday.

New Orleans played without Trey Murphy III for the second straight game as the forward continues to deal with a knee injury. Brooklyn came into the game with just two wins this year, but they quickly jumped out on the Pelicans and never looked back.

Zion Williamson led all scorers with 29 points on 8/14 shooting, but the rest of the Pelicans starters combined for just 25 points. Meanwhile, all five Nets starters scored in double figures on a night where Brooklyn led by as many as 41 points.

New Orleans continued to struggle to close the gap with their opponents in three-point shooting. The Pelicans posted a -24 point differential on Wednesday as they remain the league's worst three-point shooting team. The loss is New Orleans’ fourth straight after winning four straight games.

Here is one clear positive and one clear negative from Wednesday's loss.

Positive: Saddiq Bey continues to be silver lining

One positive is forward Saddiq Bey's continued excellent play off the bench. Bey led the bench with 15 points on 5/11 shooting. He also led the Pelicans with three-pointers made (3) and continues his impressive year so far.

The former first-round pick is averaging 15.4 points per game and has scored double-digit totals in 10 of the 12 games he’s played. New Orleans signed the forward to a three-year, $55 million extension this offseason, locking Bey in for the foreseeable future.

Many considered him a throw-in as part of the deal that brought Jordan Poole to New Orleans. Bey was recovering from an ACL injury the previous season and hadn’t played an NBA game during his recovery before being traded to the Pelicans.

His first season with the Pelicans was a huge success, with Bey appearing in 72 games and averaging a career-high 17.7 points per game. This year, he leads the bench in scoring, with the Pelicans in the top five in the league in bench scoring. Despite the Pelicans' recent struggles, Bey continues to impress.

Negative: Slow starts are dooming Pelicans

Slow starts continue to doom New Orleans, especially at home. Wednesday was the fourth home game played on a Wednesday, and the Pelicans have a -40 point differential during the first quarter at home on that day. Add that the team is a woeful three-point shooting team, and the Pelicans have little margin for error.

Brooklyn outscored New Orleans 39-25 in the opening period, setting the tone for the rest of the night. The Pelicans made just seven shots in the first quarter and committed five turnovers, which led to nine points for the Nets. More of the same happened in the second quarter, with New Orleans committing five more turnovers and surrendering 44 points to the Nets.

The injury report has had coach Jamahl Mosley shuffling his lineup over the past few games, with Murphy III out and center Yves Missi missing his 10th straight game. New Orleans has yet to find stability over the last week, losing its last four games by an average of 26 points.

The upcoming schedule is brutal, with games against the Grizzlies, Nuggets, and Warriors on their current home stand. For New Orleans to have a chance to compete, they need to start fast and avoid the early hole that’s doomed them recently.