The 24-46 Pelicans will host the 34-35 Clippers tonight at 8 PM EST. The Pelicans have listed Dejounte Murray as Out. The Clippers have listed Darius Garland, Bennedict Mathurin, Bradley Beal, and Yanic Konan Niederhauser as Out. Kawhi Leonard remains questionable.
The Pelicans are 2.5-point favorites on DraftKings Sportsbook with the total for this game set at 229.5 points.
Pelicans vs. Clippers prediction, preview
The Clippers shook things up at the trade deadline by dealing away James Harden and Ivica Zubac. They still sit with the eighth seed, which is a nice accomplishment for this team that started out the season so poorly. They have an even record now with a slightly positive scoring profile, averaging 113.4 PPG while allowing 112.8, and they’ve generally defended well enough to stay afloat, ranking 10th in opponent PPG allowed. The Clips also limit damage on the glass better than most teams, sitting 4th in opponent total rebounds allowed. The issue right now is that the defense has started to slip at the wrong time: they’ve lost three straight, they just gave up 124 to New Orleans on Wednesday. They’re conceding 120.3 opponent PPG over their last three. This is still a veteran offense that can organize itself through Kawhi Leonard and a deep guard/wing rotation, but lately the Clippers have looked a little too vulnerable once opponents drag them into second and third actions instead of letting them settle into a halfcourt slugfest. If Leonard can suit up tonight, though, they obviously have a chance, as the veteran is averaging an astounding 28.2 PPG, which is a career high. He recently returned from an ankle sprain yesterday and put up 25 points on 75% shooting against this team.
New Orleans has the worse full-season resume by a mile, but the current version is playing with more life than the numbers show. Dejounte Murray is a big part of that, with him looking productive in his limited time on the court this season. The Pelicans are just 24-46 and still own one of the league’s weakest defensive profiles overall, allowing 119.6 PPG and 27.7 opponent assists per game, which tells you how often teams have been able to get them rotating and move the ball cleanly. But there’s real short-term juice here: they’ve won four of five overall, six straight at home, and they just erased an 18-point first-quarter deficit against these same Clippers before winning by 15. In that game, New Orleans hit 53% from the floor and 43.2% from three, with Saddiq Bey and Trey Murphy III stretching the floor while Dejounte Murray piled up 11 assists and kept the game from turning stagnant. That matters because this Pelicans group is most dangerous when Zion Williamson’s downhill pressure overwhelms defenses in transition, Murphy/Bey punish the help, and Murray keeps the whole thing connected instead of turning it into pure isolation ball. Without Murray tonight, though, they’ll have big problems getting their offense going.
Pelicans vs. Clippers pick, best bet
Best Bet: LA Clippers +2.5 (-112)
The Pelicans are much worse without Dejounte Murray, and without the veteran guard tonight, things could get tough for this defense as they host the Clippers. If Kawhi Leonard can suit up, it’s easy to see the Clippers bounce back tonight as they look for a playoff spot.
