by James Q
Sunday, Mar 12, 2023NBA Basketball: Portland Trail Blazers VS New Orleans Pelicans Pick and Predictions 03/12/2023
Game: 7:10 PM ET, Sunday, March 12th, 2023
Venue: Smoothie King Center, New Orleans, Louisiana
TV: NBA League Pass
Season Record
Blazers: 31-36, 13th place Western Conference
Pelicans: 32-35, 11th place Western Conference
Opening NBA odds at USA Sportsbooks
BetMGM: Point Spread: Blazers -1.5, O/U 230.5
PointsBet: Point Spread: Blazers -2, O/U 230
Fanduel: Point Spread: Blazers -2, O/U 230.5
Starting Five:
Blazers: PG Damian Lilliard, SG Anfernee Simons, SF Matisse Thybulle, PF Jeremi Grant, C Jusuf Nurkic
Pelicans: PG CJ McCollum, SG Trey Murphy III, SF Brandon Ingram, PF Herbert Jones, C Jonas Valanciunas
A Western Conference matchup between two teams that are circling the drain. Really.. These are two bad teams that need overhauls and health. There is a deeper problem when judging 13th place VS 11th place… Do both teams even want to win? The Portland Trail Blazers haven’t been able to keep a Center healthy… well?... Ever. They draft big men and those big men get hurt and never seem to play. There are some famous Poirtland draft picks … like not taking Michael Jordan and instead taking a constantly injured big man… or not taking Kevin Durant and instead taking a constantly injured big man. It has been terrible in Portland as far as big men go… yet they can see Victor Wembanyama on the horizon… If they get this loss and keep the losing going?... They will have a pretty great amount of ping pong balls. The New Orleans Pelicans have a constantly hurt big man in PF Zion Williamson… who at the moment is on the same career path as former Trail Blazers big man C Greg Oden… It would be great if he was healthy… but he never is… Plus he signed a HUGE contract extension! Leaving the Pelicans a broken rudderless team. The great betting opportunity here will be found in the recent trends.
The Portland Trail Blazers have won only 3 of their last 10 games. They are on a 2-game losing streak. They went 4-6 ATS during that stretch. They lost their last game to the Philadelphia 76ers in a close 120-119 finish for a win ATS against a very good team. In that win they got 34 points from SG Anfernee Simons, 22 points & 11 assists from PG Damian Lilliard, and 24 points & 10 rebounds from PF Jeremi Grant. Those three make up the core of the Blazers team. They are the talent and all three need big games EVERY TIME this team plays in order to keep it competitive and have a shot at winning.
The New Orleans Pelicans were a playoff team last season without Zion Williamson and they looked like a playoff team when this season started… It has all been downhill since Zion played, played well, then got injured again. The team looks empty after that taste of greatness was taken away. They have won only 3 of their last 10 games. They lost their last game to the OKC Thunder 110-96 (as predicted here). In that loss they got 26 points from SG CJ McCollum who is playing out of position at the PG spot… They had 15 point games from SF Trey Murphy III playing out of position at SG, and SF Naji Marshall playing out of position at PF… SF Brandon Ingram did not play and is listed as Day to Day again.
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Portland Trail Blazers VS New Orleans Pelicans Prediction
Our prediction for Sunday, March 12th is…. Pelicans 118 - Blazers 114
Bet on the Pelicans… They are at home and finally the Forwards will match up better for the Pelicans. Plus you get a point or two in your favor.
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NBA Betting Trends
The Blazers are 10-3 ATS versus Southwest division opponents this season.
The Pelicans are 3 OVER and 12 UNDER in home games where the total is 230 or greater this season.
Players To Watch
Blazers: PG Damian Lilliard. Damian is a true Hall of Fame type player. Dominant at his position year after year… Ice water in his veins. Enormous $50 million dollar a year contract that will keep him locked in to staying at a truly bad franchise. He very badly needs to be surrounded by at least a few quality players before his career is over.
Pelicans: SG CJ McCollum. CJ was Damian's backcourt running mate for 6 seasons. The two paired for a very potent shooting attack. If there was one true problem it was that the pair was undersized and kind of replicated each other's strengths and weaknesses. He was traded to the Pelicans a year ago and has proven capable of big games while out from under Damian’s shadow. CJ is in a similar boat to Damian. He needs more quality teammates with better track records in health.
COACH
Blazers: Chauncey “Joe Cool” Billups
Pelicans: Willie “I played with Iverson” Green
James Q
About the Author:
James Q. has been involved with sports and gambling his entire life. A former division 1 scholarship basketball player, James understands sports (and especially basketball) inside-and-out. Following his basketball playing days, James parlayed his gambling skills into a semi-pro poker career. James resides in Los Angeles, and especially loves the Los Angeles Clippers, Los Angeles Rams, and Los Angeles Dodgers. And when he isn't betting on sports (and writing about it), James can be found performing stand-up comedy on the Sunset Strip.
