The New Orleans Pelicans host the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday evening. The Blazers are on the second night of a back-to-back with travel, while Jrue Holiday keys a Pelicans team that is facing uneasiness on the injury report. New Orleans will take the floor without Derrick Favors (back), Lonzo Ball (adductor), and Josh Hart (ankle), while Brandon Ingram (knee) will reportedly play. Portland is still operating without a pair of starting big men in Jusuf Nurkic and Zach Collins and will also be without Damian Lillard (back). Tip-off is at 8 p.m. ET at the Smoothie King Center. Sportsbooks list the Pelicans as two-point favorites, a massive 5.5-point swing from the opener, while the Over-Under, or total number of points Vegas thinks will be scored, is 231.5 in the latest Blazers vs. Pelicans odds. Before you make any Pelicans vs. Blazers picks and NBA predictions, see what SportsLine's advanced computer model has to say.
This model simulates every NBA game 10,000 times, and anyone who followed it last season saw massive returns, finishing 300-252 on all its top-rated NBA picks. On top-rated NBA picks against the spread and on the money line alone, the model returned a whopping $4,280 last season. It's off to a profitable start on all-top rated picks again this season, and enters Week 5 of the 2019-20 NBA season on a 9-4 run on all top-rated NBA spread picks. Anybody who has followed it has consistently beaten NBA odds and seen huge returns.
Now, the model has set its sights on Blazers vs. Pelicans. We can tell you that the model is leaning over, and it's also generated a strong against the spread pick that is hitting in more than 50 percent of simulations. You can visit SportsLine now to see it. Now, here are the NBA betting lines and trends for Blazers vs. Pelicans.
- Blazers vs. Pelicans spread: Pelicans -2
- Blazers vs. Pelicans over-under: 231.5 points
- Blazers vs. Pelicans money line: New Orleans -130, Portland +100
- Portland: Hassan Whiteside averaging 15.1 points and 11.0 rebounds on the road
- New Orleans: Pelicans 3-4 at home this season
The model understands that one of the Pelicans' expected strengths this season was depth and, at the moment, New Orleans does not possess the same varied options in the rotation. That opens the door for a Portland team that is also shallow but is 3-2 against the spread as a road underdog this season and a perfect 2-0 against the number versus teams like New Orleans that are winning less than 45 percent of their games.
Just because Portland has a few edges doesn't mean it will cover the Blazers vs. Pelicans spread on Tuesday.
The model is also aware that New Orleans is playing improved basketball, winning three out of the last five games after a woeful start. The uncertainty with the Pelicans' roster on a nightly basis can be unsettling, but New Orleans also has a clear rest advantage in this spot, with Portland forced to travel for a second consecutive evening. The Pelicans have defensive concerns, but Portland doesn't have quite as much firepower at the forward spots as they have in recent years.
On the other end, the Pelicans sport an above-average offense, ranking No. 11 in the NBA on a per-possession basis. When combined with a bottom-tier defense from Portland and clear match-up edges in the frontcourt, there is reason to believe that New Orleans can find success. Jrue Holiday is a defensive weapon under any circumstances, but he has also shown himself to be a strong offensive force and will be tasked with a large workload in this game.
So who wins Pelicans vs. Blazers and which side of the spread hits in more than 50 percent of simulations? Visit SportsLine now to find out which side of the Pelicans vs. Blazers spread you need to jump on Tuesday, all from the model that has crushed its NBA picks.
