Pelicans Looking For Ridiculous Upset
A few months ago, nobody thought that the Pelicans would be able to make it into the playoffs. Then a trade for CJ McCollum happened and suddenly they were in the play-in tournament with a kick in their step.
They won two games to grab the eighth and final spot, and are now tied 2-2 with the best team in the league right now, the Phoenix Suns. They look to keep this momentum going after knocking them off in Game 4, though the Suns aren’t a tough team to crack. The loss of Devin Booker has made this series more competitive than it should be.
Let’s check the latest NBA picks, stats, injury reports, and NBA odds for Pelicans vs Suns. We’ve plenty of NBA playoffs odds for you to consider.
Pelicans Have Heart
If you have been able to catch a single game of this series, you can easily tell that this group plays with a lot of heart. Jose Alvarado embodies that with his ferocious defense.
Other players like Brandon Ingram, McCollum, Herb Jones and Jonas Valanciunas have been excellent on both ends of this series. Ingram, in particular, just dropped 30 points and Valanciunas had 26 points and 15 rebounds.
New Orleans Pelicans doesn’t have the most talented team in basketball right now at all. However, they never back down from a challenge and we can clearly see that here. They are also taking full advantage of the absence of Booker in the last few games.
Suns Can’t Panic Without Booker
The loss of Booker to this team was huge. He was on an MVP-type of campaign before suffering the hamstring pull and now Phoenix Suns is left with a big hole on offense.
There are tons of great role players here on this roster, but not a guy that is a go-to scorer in clutch situations.
Chris Paul scored four points in Game 4, proving that even though he is a fantastic leader, he won’t be the top scorer on the roster every game.
Bottom line, Phoenix won’t replace Booker with just one player in the lineup. It is going to be a complete team effort from guys like Jae Crowder, Cam Johnson, Mikal Bridges and DeAndre Ayton.
If the Suns keep their composure and don’t stray too far from their brand of basketball, they shouldn’t have anything to worry about.
Pelicans vs Suns Head-to-Head
The Suns won three out of the four games against the Pelicans throughout the regular season. Adding on the 2-2 split of this current series, the Suns keep hold of the overall series record 5-3.
Pelicans vs Suns Game Information
- Game: Pelicans (36-46) vs Suns (64-18)
- Location: Footprint Center, Phoenix, AZ
- Day/Time: Tuesday, April 26th. 10:00 p.m. ET
- Pelicans vs Suns Live Stream: NBA Game Pass
Take a Look at the Other 2 NBA Western Conference Matchups
Pelicans vs Suns Betting Lines
Pelicans vs Suns Prediction
The spread is currently favoring the Suns by -6.5 points in the sportsbook but regardless of who wins this game, chances are that it will be decided by less than that amount.
Phoenix and New Orleans are playing a pivotal Game 5 and the winner of this game usually goes on to win the series more often than not (according to historical NBA statistics).
Neither team looks significantly better than the other at the moment, especially with Booker out of commission. The Suns would be a better pick for a straight up winner, but against the spread, it might be wise to roll with the Pelicans for your NBA picks.
Pick: New Orleans Pelicans +6.5 Points (-110)
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