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The Indiana Pacers will take the road to face the Capital One Arena on Friday night for an Eastern Conference matchup. Below is our NBA odds series as ClutchPoints hands out a Pacers-Wizards prediction and pick. ClutchPoints will also let you know how to watch the game.
The Pacers (13-9) are coming off a highly-dramatic (mostly off-the-court) contest against the Milwaukee Bucks. Indiana felt the wrath of Giannis Antetokounmpo (both on and off the court), who scored a career-high 64 points to lead the Bucks to a 140-126 win a Fiserv Forum. Tyrese Haliburton cooled off a little bit with 22 points, five rebounds, and seven assists, while Myles Turner also had 22 points with nine rebounds and two blocks.
Meanwhile, the Wizards (3-20) are coming off a 142-122 beatdown from the New Orleans Pelicans, with Brandon Ingram going off for 40 points. Kyle Kuzma led the way with 27 points, while five other Wizards scored in double-digits. Washington also fell to Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers by 45 points earlier this week — its worst loss of the season by far. The team has lost six straight games and has given up over 140 points over its last two defeats.
Here are the NBA odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
NBA Odds: Pacers-Wizards Odds
Indiana Pacers: -8.5 (-110)
Washington Wizards: +8.5 (-110)
Over: 259.5 (-110)
Under: 259.5 (-110)
How to Watch Pacers vs. Wizards
Time: 7 PM ET/ 4 PM PT
TV: Bally Sports Indiana, MNMT
Stream: fuboTV (Click for free trial)
Why The Pacers Could Cover The Spread
Indiana is 13-9 against the spread and has covered in six of their 10 games away from Gainbridge Fieldhouse this season. Because of their high-octane offense, the Pacers have also gone 18-5 on the over/under, which is the best mark in the Association so far. They have also gone over the over/under in nine of their 10 road games this season.
The Pacers beat the Wizards 143-120 in their first encounter this season. So if that game is any indication of how Friday's matchup will go, Indiana has a good shot of covering the 8.5-point spread. Nonetheless, that game did happen in Indianapolis, but the Pacers have covered the spread at a better rate on the road (6-of-10) than at home (7-of-12).
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Tyrese Haliburton has cooled off a bit since coming back from the NBA In-Season Tournament, where he exploded onto the scenes with some stellar performances, especially during the quarters and semis. Over his last two, the budding superstar is averaging just 18.0 points, though he is still distributing with 23 assists total.
As noted, though, this Pacers squad isn't just all about Haliburton. Well, maybe it is. But the All-Star guard has done a tremendous job in spreading the wealth and running this juggernaut of an offense, which ranks No. 1 in the NBA and scores 128.4 points on a nightly basis. Apart from Haliburton, seven other Pacers are scoring in double-figures, led by Myles Turner with 17.6 points per game.
Indiana will be without Andrew Nembhard (knee) and Jalen Smith (knee) for this game.
Why The Wizards Could Cover The Spread
The Wizards have gone 10-13 against the spread overall and just 2-7 at home on the ATS this season. Wizards games have also gone past the over in 15 of 23 games this season. At Capital One Arena, they are 6-3 on the over/under.
Washington may be one of the worst teams in the NBA. But if there's one thing the Wizards can do well, that is put up points on the board. They rank 10th in points per game (115.9) this season and 6th in field goal percentage (48.2 percent).
Kyle Kuzma has led the team in scoring this season, averaging 23.0 points per game on 47.7 percent field goal shooting to go along with 6.0 rebounds and 4.4 assists. Jordan Poole, meanwhile, is in the midst of a letdown season, but is still averaging 16.5 points per game. Apart from those two, four other Wizards are scoring in double figures — Deni Avdija (12.1 points), Tyus Jones (11.1 points), Corey Kispert (10.9 points), and Daniel Gafford (10.1 points).
Poole, however, is listed as questionable due to a sprained left ankle. Landry Shamet (knee), Ryan Rollins (ribs), and Delon Wright (knee) are all listed as out for Friday's contest.
Final Pacers-Wizards Prediction & Pick
Take the Pacers to win and cover the spread. They easily covered the spread the last time they played the Pacers. The best offense in the league (Indiana) should have no trouble lighting up the worst defense in the NBA (Washington). Tyrese Haliburton hasn't lit up the scoreboard as much over his last three games (including the In-Season Tournament championship), so he could be in for a big night. Also, take the over for this one. These two teams only care about offense and have no regard for the other end of the floor, so expect a high-scoring affair between them.
