Sean Barnard details his preview and prediction for Saturday’s New Orleans Pelicans at Philadelphia 76ers NBA matchup.
Tipping off at 7:30 p.m. ET, the New Orleans Pelicans will face off with the Philadelphia 76ers in a cross-conference matchup.
This will mark the first of two matchups between these two teams this season. The second will take place three weeks from now in New Orleans. But tonight will take place in Philadelphia with some extra buzz as the 2001 NBA Finals team is honored tonight.
Looking at the odds for tonight’s game, the 76ers are 6.5-point favorites and hold -218 odds on the Moneyline on DraftKings Sportsbook. The Pelicans are +180 underdogs with the game total set at 231.5 points.
This article will look at a preview and prediction for the Saturday night matchup.
Pelicans at 76ers Preview
The New Orleans Pelicans enter with a 13-37 record and sit in 14th place in the Western Conference. They have built a bit of momentum of late, winning three of their last four, with the lone loss coming against the Oklahoma City Thunder. On the season, New Orleans has gone 28-21-1 against the spread, and the game total has gone 25-25 to the over/under.
Dejounte Murray remains sidelined with his Achilles tear, but the Pelicans otherwise enter this matchup with a clean bill of health. Zion Williamson has started to find his stride of late, averaging 22.0 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 3.4 assists per game on the season. Trey Murphy III adds 21.6 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 3.7 assists while shooting a team-high 8.2 three-point attempts. Saddiq Bey has started to find his footing in New Orleans, averaging 16.1 points and 5.9 rebounds on the season. The pair of first-round rookies, Derik Queen and Jeremiah Fears, have each shown some encouraging flashes. Herb Jones, Yves Missi, and Jose Alvarado also play important roles in the rotation.
As a team, the Pelicans are averaging 114.4 points per game, which ranks 21st in the NBA. They rank 23rd in offensive rating, 23rd in field goal percentage, 27th in three-point attempts per game, 30th in team three-point percentage, and 13th in pace. Defensively, opponents are scoring 120.9 points per game, which is the third-worst rate in the NBA. New Orleans ranks 27th in defensive rating, 24th in opponent field goal percentage, 16th in opponent three-point percentage, and allows the second-most three-point attempts per game.
The Philadelphia 76ers received some unfortunate news that Paul George is suspended for the next 25 games. George had settled into his role on this Sixers team, posting averages of 16.0 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists, so Philadelphia will need to make up for his production.
The Sixers sit in sixth place in the Eastern Conference with a 26-21 record this season. They are coming off back-to-back wins over the Bucks and Kings in the previous two games. Overall, Philadelphia has gone 26-21 against the spread, and the game total has gone over in 25 of their 49 games played.
Quentin Grimes is listed as probable for tonight after missing the previous two games with an ankle sprain. Andre Drummond is also questionable due to an illness. Tyrese Maxey headlines the scoring for Philadelphia, averaging 29.4 points per game along with 6.9 assists and 4.2 rebounds. Joel Embiid has looked close to his MVP self of late, posting averages of 25.7 points, 7.4 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game. Kelly Oubre Jr, V.J. Edgecombe, and Dominick Barlow also play key roles in the rotation.
Philadelphia is averaging the 13th-most points in the NBA at 116.5 per contest. The Sixers rank 15th in offensive rating, 25th in field goal percentage, 15th in three-point percentage, and 19th in pace. Defensively, opponents are scoring 115.8 points per game against the Sixers, which ranks 16th in the league. They rank 15th in defensive rating, 16th in opponent field goal percentage, and ninth in opponent three-point percentage.
Pelicans vs. 76ers Prediction, Best Bet
The spread for this matchup was bouncing between 9.5 and 10.5 on DraftKings Sportsbook before the announcement of Paul George’s suspension. The number has since dropped to 6.5, which feels like a bit of an overreaction based on George’s level of importance to this team. The nine-time All-Star is effective in his role, but has taken a step back in the offensive pecking order to allow Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid to serve as the foundation of the offensive attack.
Neither of these teams has played at full strength with a sample size that the organization would like. Injuries have been a consistent storyline for each side, although the current outlook is better than it has been the case for most of the season.
Expect a more spirited effort from the Sixers tonight compared to their previous matchup with the Kings. Philadelphia sleep-walked through most of the matchup and managed to secure a two-point win despite being outplayed for most of the contest. Nick Nurse made it clear at the podium that this level of effort was not satisfactory, and the team had a day off in between to get back on track.
Zion Williamson will provide some issues with his athleticism, and Derik Queen’s style of play will create some unique problems. But as long as the Sixers limit the Pelicans on the offensive glass, they will be able to push the level of scoring to a level New Orleans cannot match. Tyrese Maxey has proven himself as one of the most dynamic scorers in the league, and he and Embiid have a two-man game that makes it impossible for opposing defenses to take away every option. New Orleans ranking 29th in opponent three-point attempts allowed is also a concern against this Sixers team, which does a nice job spacing the floor and kicking to shooters.
Expect the youthful Pelicans squad to show some spunk and refuse to fully go away. But when push comes to shove, this Sixers team will have enough offensive production to push the scoring to a level the Pelicans cannot reach. Count on this game slipping away in the late stages and for the Sixers to win their third consecutive contest as they cover the 6.5-point spread.