Los Angeles Clippers vs. New Orleans Pelicans Betting Preview & Picks

The NBA Playoffs are about to begin, but first, we have a play-in tournament to get through to determine the final playoff spots.

The Los Angeles Clippers are hoping to punch yet another ticket to the playoffs, as they’ve missed out just once since 2012. The New Orleans Pelicans, on the other hand, are hoping to get back to the playoffs for the first time since 2018.

Betting Odds & Lines

betJACK Training Camp has the point spread of this game at Clippers -4.5. We also have the over/under at 207.

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Clippers’ Outlook

The Clippers played as good of a game as they could against the Minnesota Timberwolves, as they successfully shut Karl-Anthony Towns down.

However, the grit of Anthony Edwards, D’Angelo Russell, and Patrick Beverley proved enough to carry the Wolves over the Clips despite getting 34 points from Paul George.

Under normal circumstances, the Clippers should be competing for not only one of the top seeds in the Western Conference but also a championship. 

Unfortunately, they’ve had to go through this entire season without perennial MVP candidate Kawhi Leonard while also missing George for well over half the season.

But with George now back into the swing of things, the playoffs become a whole new season for this team, as this is a group that was able to defeat the Utah Jazz in the conference semifinals even without Leonard while also taking the Phoenix Suns to six games. 

This is also a team that was able to retain Reggie Jackson, Marcus Morris, Nicolas Batum, and Luke Kennard while getting significant production out of Terance Mann and Isaiah Hartenstein on top of acquiring Robert Covington and Norman Powell at the trade deadline.

The depth of this team is unreal, as they’d easily be championship contenders if Leonard were in the mix.

Pelicans’ Outlook

The Pelicans were able to get by the Spurs with Canton's CJ McCollum, Brandon Ingram, and Jonas Valanciunas all putting up high scoring totals. However, it came against a team that virtually had no chance to do any damage this postseason.

This is a team that has had to overcome the drama surrounding Zion Williamson, with his reported unhappiness down in the “Big Easy.” 

That has inspired excellent play from McCollum ever since he was acquired from the Portland Trail Blazers, as Ingram and Valanciunas have also embraced larger roles offensively for this team.

Herbert Jones has emerged as a solid two-way wing, with his ability to stuff the stat sheet and take on the assignment of guarding the opposing team’s best player.

Jose Alvarado has also found his niche as a spark plug off the bench both as a scorer and playmaker.

Clippers Win

This has all the makings to be an exciting game, but the Clippers proved they can shut down the opposing team’s best player, and they have a bonafide star in George to carry the offensive load while providing lockdown defense.

Expect the Clippers to advance.