Trail Blazers vs Pelicans Pick

New Orleans Pelicans (30-32) vs. Portland Trail Blazers (29-31)
March 1, 2023 10:00 pm EDT
The Line: Portland Trail Blazers -2; Over/Under: +232.5
(Get latest betting odds)

The New Orleans Pelicans invade the Moda Center to take on the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday night.

The New Orleans Pelicans have been in a slump as they’ve lost five of their last six games overall and they will be eager to stop a four-game skid after coming up short against the Magic in a 101-93 loss on Monday. Brandon Ingram led the team with 25 points, six rebounds and five assists, CJ McCollum added 18 points while Herbert Jones chipped in with 10 points but no other player scored more than eight points. As a team, the Pelicans shot 44 percent from the field and just six of 27 from the 3-point line as they held the Magic to just 14 points in the second quarter to overcome an early deficit, only to scored just 19 points in the fourth quarter themselves to allow the Magic to slip away in the end.

Meanwhile, the Portland Trail Blazers have been in a rut as they’ve lost six of their last eight games overall and they will be hoping to bounce back after getting thrashed by the Warriors in a 123-105 road loss last night. Damian Lillard led the way with 25 points and seven assists, Jerami Grant added 24 points while Shaedon Sharpe chipped in with 13 points off the bench. As a team, the Trail Blazers shot 43 percent from the field and 12 of 39 from the 3-point line as they set the tone with 41 points in the first quarter to jump out to a 23-point lead, but it was a tale of two halves as the Warriors dominated the second half by 75-40 to deliver the Trail Blazers one of their worst losses of the season.

Looking at the betting trends, the Pelicans are 1-6 ATS in their last seven road games, 1-5 ATS in their last six games against a team with a losing record and 0-4 ATS in their last four games overall. The Trail Blazers are 2-5-1 ATS in their last eight home games and 2-5-1 ATS in their last eight games overall.

Head to head, the under is 5-0 in the last five meetings overall.

The Pelicans are again missing Zion Williamson, Larry Nance Jr, Jose Alvarado and Jonas Valanciunas, while the Trail Blazers are still without Jusuf Nurkic and Anfernee Simons. The Pelicans have struggled to keep their heads above water as they’ve been plagued by injuries and you could say the same about the Trail Blazers who are fresh off a bad loss to the Warriors. You couldn’t bet on either team with any confidence at the moment, but the Trail Blazers were so badly beaten last night that I’m expecting them to come out firing at home.