Sin City came alive a couple of nights ago with the start of NBA Summer League, which continues throughout the day on Saturday. There’s an afternoon tilt between the New Orleans Pelicans and Charlotte Hornets that carries some intrigue thanks to the litany of young talent involved, but which one of these teams will come out on top after tip-off at 4 p.m. ET?
Here’s a betting pick and game prediction for the Pelicans vs. Hornets matchup in NBA Summer League on Saturday afternoon, courtesy of lines on DraftKings Sportsbook.
Pelicans vs. Hornets prediction, preview
We’ll start with the Pelicans, who fell to the Minnesota Timberwolves 105-92 in an outing that delivered a mixed bag of results. The good parts of that outing start with the squad’s three-point shooting, going 14-for-33 (42%) and playing a largely competitive game. It was a stellar performance for third-year pro Kobe Bufkin, who dropped 30 points with five made threes and six rebounds on the day. Micah Peavy, who saw action in 61 NBA games as a rookie last season, also popped with 16 points and five assists. Even 5-foot-8 guard Markquis Nowell saw some success with 20 points and six dimes, though his future on an NBA roster at his size is, of course, bleak.
The bad for New Orleans in that opening game boiled down to two things. The first was that the Pels were out-rebounded 46-38 on the day and lost the margin in offensive boards by five. The second were their 34 fouls, 10 more than Minnesota produced. Even just sharper discipline could help swing the outcome today, but they’ll also need to be better on the boards if the three-point shooting doesn’t stick.
As for the Hornets, there’s a lot to like about this roster. They have four first-round picks in the squad, starting with 2024’s No. 6 selection Tidjane Salaun, who shot over 40% from deep last year in the NBA. He’s joined by last year’s No. 29 pick Liam McNeeley, who only saw action in 31 contests with the pros as a rookie but was a key piece of a title-winning UConn group in 2024-2025. Of course, both of this year’s first-rounders are also set for showcase. German big man Hannes Steinbach went 14th overall out of Washington and Texas Tech guard Christian Anderson was selected at No. 18. Even Ryan Kalkbrenner, who saw a rotation role with Charlotte in the NBA last year, is around for this tournament.
If there’s one word to describe the Hornets here, “stacked” is probably the best way to put it. They opened Summer League with an 86-74 win over the Orlando Magic in which McNeeley erupted for 28 points and shot 7-for-8 from deep, while Steinbach posted an efficient 15-and-11 double-double in his debut. Results from other pieces weren’t as stellar — Anderson shot just 2-for-11 with six points and Salaun was largely quiet with only nine points. In the end, the group overcame 21 turnovers and shot 40% from deep with a nine-board edge as well.
Pelicans vs. Hornets pick, best bet
The Hornets are a -6.5 favorite tonight with -270 odds on the Moneyline. The Pelicans hold +220 odds to win outright with the game total set at 181.5 points.
Anything can happen in these Summer League games since there’s much less focus on structure and more of an emphasis on flee-flowing basketball through the rookies as they show what they’re capable of. Of course, youth sometimes means sloppy mistakes and more unpredictable outcomes as well.
Even with that said, it’s tough not to look at Charlotte and feel enthused, if not downright confident in the ability to cover today. The Hornets have so much talent on this roster that they can’t even fit them all into the starting five. If you want big men, you get Kalkbrenner or Steinbach; guard play centers around Anderson and Sion James; while Salaun and McNeeley are sharpshooting forwards. There’s a ton of players with significant upside, it’s just a matter of which may pop in this environment. Facing a Pels roster without the same caliber of top-end guys for this environment, the Hornets should cruise to a win and cover handily.
Best Bet: CHA Hornets -6.5 (-105)
More NBA Coverage
Check out more NBA content on DraftKings Network!
