The Golden State Warriors and the New Orleans Pelicans will battle it out for the second-straight night in NOLA. It’s time to continue our NBA odds series and make a Warriors-Pelicans prediction and pick.
Golden State got out to a fiery start in this very same matchup last night, taking a commanding 18-point lead in the first quarter. They never looked back from that point as they went on to secure the victory by 15 points. Both teams are competing for the same play-in spot and have been playing well of late. Which Western Conference bunch will gain ground on the other in a vital matchup at the Smoothie King Center?
Here’s how sportsbooks have set the opening Warriors-Pelicans odds.
NBA Odds: Warriors-Pelicans Odds
Golden State Warriors +3 (-110)
New Orleans Pelicans -3 (-110)
Over 235 Points (-110)
Under 235 Points (-110)
Why The Warriors Could Cover The Spread
The Golden State Warriors secured a huge victory in last night's game against the Pelicans. The crucial win moved Golden State up to the eighth seed in the Western Conference standings, which is huge for one reason. Given that they will likely be in the play-in tournament regardless of how the rest of the season plays out, there is a clear advantage to being in the seventh or eighth seed. That game in the play-in tournament is a win-and-in and the loser lives to see another day.
The Golden State Warriors have no one other than Stephen Curry to thank for their resurgence of late. His play has been out of this world and he added another stellar performance to the resume with 41 points last night. Curry was able to have his way against a porous Pelicans defense. Steph has been carrying the load with Draymond facilitating, but the question for Golden State in this game will be if any of their other starters are healthy enough to suit up. Although the Warriors haven't been great on the road this year, they have been great against New Orleans with a record of 16-4 in their last 20 head-to-head matchups.
Why The Pelicans Could Cover The Spread
The New Orleans Pelicans are hanging onto their playoff hopes for dear life at this point in the season. They are currently 2.5 games back of the San Antonio Spurs for the last play-in spot and have to figure out how to play defense on the fly if they'll have any chance of surpassing Greg Popovich's group. The Pelicans will have to find a way to cut Golden State's 53% shooting performance from last night down if they want to come away with a split of this back-to-back series.
New Orleans shot just 20% from three in the loss as well, which unlike the defensive struggles is actually uncharacteristic for this group. The Pelicans have been a fairly serviceable team on the offensive end of the floor, which can prove fruitful against a depleted Golden State team. New Orleans has been far better on their home court this season as well, going 17-17 on the season and 15-19 ATS. Zion has continued to carry this team to relevance and their 4-1 ATS record in their last five games shows that this team is still competing with their hopes dwindling.
Final Warriors-Pelicans Prediction & Pick
One time, shame on you. Two times, shame on me. That is the risk I'm willing to take in this second-straight game between these two teams. I rolled with the Pelicans last night, which didn't prove to be a profitable move. I'm confident that they'll pull this one out, though. Golden State has been much less impressive on the road and New Orleans has been a far better team at home this season. With Golden State having to play their fourth-straight road game, I'm giving the slight edge to the Pelicans in a do-or-die type of game.
FINAL PICK: New Orleans Pelicans -3 (-110)
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