The Portland Trail Blazers are hosting the New Orleans Pelicans again tonight to close out their two-game set after they had come back late in the fourth quarter Tuesday night to win the game against the Pelicans. It’s time to continue our NBA odds series and make a Pelicans-Blazers prediction and pick.
The Pelicans are currently sitting in the 11th seed in the western conference with a record of 17-23. The talented young team continues to show their inexperience as they struggle to close out games in the fourth quarter.
Despite a slow start to the season because of an injury to one of their star players C.J. McCollum, the Blazers find themselves holding the 6th seed in the western conference with a very solid record of 23-16. The Blazers have won five of their last seven games and will be looking to sweep the regular season matchup against the Pelicans tonight.
Here’s how sportsbooks have set the opening Pelicans-Blazers odds.
NBA Odds: Pelicans-Blazers Odds
New Orleans Pelicans +1.5 (-113)
Portland Trail Blazers -1.5 (-107)
Over 241 Points (-110)
Under 241 Points(-110)
Why The Pelicans Could Cover The Spread
The talent young duo of Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram have been fantastic to watch this season so far.
The two together are combining for nearly 50 points, 10 assists, and 12 rebounds per game for the Pelicans this season. What's even more impressive is the efficiency at which Zion and Ingram are shooting the ball at — 62% and 50% respectively.
The question for the Pelicans then is where the rest of the production will come from. There are only two other double-digit scorers on the Pelicans and they are Lonzo Ball at 14.2 points per game and Eric Bledsoe at a measly 11.8 points per game.
In addition, the Pelicans are one of the worse defensive teams in the NBA right now allowing the fourth most points by the opposing team. They will especially need to step up the pressure on the defensive end against the Blazers who have the 6th best offensive rating right now and arguably the best point guard in the league right now in Damian Lillard.
The key for the Pelicans to cover the spread is to find production from a player in addition to Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram, as well as to step up their defensive intensity as a team and individually. Most importantly, the Pelicans will need to do a better job containing and slowing down Damian Lillard, who had a spectacular showing in their last matchup with 50 points, 10 assists, and 6 rebounds, if they want a shot to cover the spread.
Why The Blazers Could Cover The Spread
The Blazers were able to overcome a double-digit deficit against the Pelicans Tuesday night to pull off a huge win behind a dominant performance from Damian Lillard.
Lillard is the most important player on the Blazers team and is averaging 30.5 points, 8.0 assists, and 4.5 rebounds for the team this season.
While C.J. McCollum did returned to the court on Tuesday against the Pelicans, his impact was not strongly felt during the 26 minutes he was on the floor as he only recorded 10 points, 2 assists, and 4 rebounds. Still with C.J. McCollum now back that should free up Lillard a bit more on the offensive end and to take some of the pressure off of Lillard to constantly create shots for himself and for his teammates.
The two stars should, again, have their way tonight against the poor defensive Pelicans team tonight and if the Blazers are able to get contributions from key role players, like Robert Covington, Gary Trent Jr., and Carmelo Anthony, they should be able to easily cover the spread.
Final Pelicans-Blazers Prediction & Pick
It's worth noting that in the two losses this season to the Blazers, the Pelicans only lost by one point and two points because of clutch plays from Damian Lillard in the final moments of each game. The Pelicans have not had an answer for Damian Lillard but I also do not expect another 50-point game from Damian Lillard. After such a disappointing end to their last game, I expect the Pelicans to come out with a lot of energy in particular Zion Williamson who missed a gaming-winning shot in the fourth and Brandon Ingram who missed two free throws that could have potentially sealed the game.
FINAL SCORE PREDICTION & PICK FOR PELICANS-BLAZERS: PEL 124, POR 120 (PEL +1.5)
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