Spurs vs Pelicans Pick, Preview & Betting Odds For Tuesday, March 21st

Check out our free Spurs vs Pelicans pick and preview for this NBA game in New Orleans. See who we like to win and cover the spread in this NBA matchup.

Spurs vs Pelicans NBA Pick & Preview

Sport: NBA
Teams: San Antonio Spurs at New Orleans Pelicans
Where: New Orleans at Smoothie King Center
Date: Tuesday, March 21st
Betting Odds NO -11, SA +422 | NO -572 O/U 235.5

So far, the Spurs have put together an overall record of 19-52, while going 30-41-0 vs the spread. Over the team’s past 3 games, San Antonio has an overall record of 1-2, including going 2-1 against the spread.

The Spurs are coming off a 126-118 win over the Hawks. This away win came despite entering the game as the 10 point underdogs. San Antonio pulled out the win despite trailing by 22 points in the half. The team was able to trim down the Hawks lead down to 3 heading into the 4th quarter. Leading the team in scoring was Keldon Johnson, as he contributed 29 points while hitting 61.9% of his shots.

So far, the Pelicans have put together an overall record of 34-37, while going 32-39-0 vs the spread. In the teams past 3 games, their overall mark sits at 1-2. New Orleans is 1-2 vs the spread in these matchups.

The Pelicans will look to keep things rolling, as they previously beat the Rockets by a score of 117-107. Heading into the game, they were 5 point favorites against the spread, giving them an ATS win. New Orleans played well enough in the second half to prevent the Rockets from making things interesting down the stretch, as they led by 20 going into halftime. Leading the team in scoring was Brandon Ingram, as he contributed 26 points while hitting 50.0% of his shots.

Head To Head Recap & Stats

In the most recent matchup between the two teams, the Pelicans picked up the 129-110 win over the Spurs. The Pelicans point margin of victory was enough to cover the spread as 5.5 point favorite. So far this season, the Pelicans have a record of 3-0 vs the Spurs. Similar to their season-long average, the Spurs averaged 108.5 points per game vs the Pelicans. Similar to the Spurs, the Pelicans scored at a rate near the league average. In their games vs San Antonio, the team averaged 109.5 points per game. Across the previous 5 meetings between the teams, the Pelicans have an average scoring margin of +10 points per game, leading to an ATS mark of 4-1. In these matchups, the teams have put together an over-under mark of 2-3. Combined, they averaged 224 points in these games.

Odds & Free Betting Analysis For This NBA Game

This season, the San Antonio offense is ranked 22nd in the NBA in scoring at 112.8 points per game. Coming into today’s game, the Spurs will be looking to improve their 3-point shooting numbers, as they are averaging just 11.0 made 3’s per game. If the San Antonio offense is going to turn things around, not only do they need to improve their outside shooting but they must do a better job protecting the ball. Currently, they are averaging 15.0 turnovers per game.

Against the Pelicans, the Spurs will need a stronger defensive effort as they are ranked just 23rd in points allowed.

A key injury to note in this game is the likely absence of the Spurs 2nd leading scorer, Tre Jones. In his 58 games, Jones is averaging 12.5 points per game while dishing out 6.2 assists and grabbing 3.4 rebounds. In he is unable to take the floor, the team will be looking for even more production out of Keldon Johnson, who leads the team and is 37th in the NBA at 21.8 points per contest. For the season, he has connected on 45.0% of his field goal attempts while taking 19.1% of overall shots.

For the season, the Pelicans offensive unit is ranked just 16th in scoring at 113.9 points per contest. Coming into today’s game, the Pelicans will be looking to improve their 3-point shooting numbers, as they are averaging just 10.9 made 3’s per game. If New Orleans continues to struggle with their outside shot, they may look to start playing with more pace, as they are currently 15th in the league in possessions per game.

Currently, the Pelicans defense is ranked 13th in points allowed. So far, opposing teams are averaging 110.28 points per game vs the unit.

This season, the Pelicans offense has primarily worked through CJ McCollum and Jonas Valanciunas who are 1st and 2nd on the team in scoring. In his 64 games, McCollum is 43rd in the NBA at 21.1 points per game. So far, him and Valanciunas have accounted for 32% of the team’s field goal attempts while combining to average 35.3 points per contest. In addition to sitting 2nd on the team in scoring, Jonas Valanciunas is grabbing 9.7 rebounds for New Orleans to go along with 1.6 assists.