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The NBA-leading Utah Jazz head to the bayou to take on Zion Williamson and the New Orleans Pelicans. With that said, it’s time to continue our NBA Odds series and make a Jazz-Pelicans prediction and pick.
Utah has continued to dominate opponents, most recently beating the Orlando Magic 124-109 on the road. They are winners of eight of their last 10 games and have been getting production from their starters and role players. Donovan Mitchell has scored over 30 points in the last two games.
The Pelicans, meanwhile, traded away Jrue Holiday in the offseason and haven’t been able to get the point guard production out of Lonzo Ball and Eric Bledsoe that they need. New Orleans has lost seven of their last 10 games, with their last two outings against the Milwaukee Bucks and San Antonio Spurs ending in a close defeat on the road.
This is the third meeting between these two NBA teams, with the Jazz taking both games at home by double-digit wins.
NBA Odds: Jazz-Pelicans Odds
Utah Jazz -7 (-110)
New Orleans Pelicans +7 (-110)
Over 236 Points (-115)
Under 236 Points (-105)
Why The Jazz Could Cover The Spread
The Jazz are continuously showing the rest of the league that they are a team that doesn’t mess around. With an NBA-leading record of 27-7, they heading into the All-Star break as the only team to not have lost double-digit games. A big reason for their success is their effectiveness from downtown. They are first in the league in 3-point field goals made, and they are tied for second in offensive rating at 118.1.
Offensively, they have been successful because they are getting great play out of Mitchell and company. Mitchell leads the team with 24.5 points per game, which is good for 17th most in the league, but it doesn’t all fall on him. The Jazz have shown time and time again that they can score by committee–with Joe Ingles, Jordan Clarkson and Bojan Bogdanovic being a big part of that.
Utah dominated New Orleans in both previous games, and it shouldn’t come as a surprise with the way they are playing right now that they could win this game by double-digits against a Pelicans squad that doesn’t play great defense.
Why The Pelicans Could Cover The Spread
If there was ever a doubt that Zion Williamson would have a sophomore slump, he’s put those thoughts to rest. Zion has been the best player for the Pelicans this season as seen by his 25.5 points per game, which is good enough for a tie with LeBron James in 11th.
He has put up 20 or more points in each of his last 12 games. Williamson is not alone as a player under first-year head coach Stan Van Gundy that has proven he can score. The team’s other best player is forward Brandon Ingram.
Ingram’s numbers are up a tick after last year’s breakout season. Unfortunately, for both Ingram and Williamson they aren’t getting the complementary basketball from their teammates that the Jazz are getting.
The Pelicans do lead the league in one category: offensive rebounds. They have great size upfront with the two forwards mentioned, and they also have Steven Adams who continues to be a rebounding machine.
The Pelicans are a much more cohesive team since their first two meetings with the Jazz back in January, but they will have to play near-perfect basketball in order to take down the league’s top team.
Final Jazz-Pelicans Prediction & Pick
The Jazz must like butter because they have been on a roll. The Jazz are 25-9 against the spread, meaning they are covering 73.5 percent of the time which is the most in the league.
The Pelicans will have their work cut out for them, but the Jazz will dust off the Pelicans with yet another double-digit win.
FINAL SCORE PREDICTION: UTA 115, NO 103 (UTA -7)