The Boston Celtics will take on the New Orleans Pelicans at 7 p.m. ET on Saturday at the Smoothie King Center. New Orleans is 18-30 overall and 11-12 at home, while the Celtics are 25-25 overall and 9-15 on the road. Both teams have lost three of their last five games and have similar records against the spread, with Boston going 23-26 against the number while New Orleans has gone 23-25.
The franchises have split their last 10 head-to-head matchups straight up and against the spread, but the Pelicans have won and covered two of the last three meetings. Boston is favored by 5.5 points in the latest Pelicans vs. Celtics odds from Caesars Sportsbook, and the over-under is set at 213.5. Before entering any Celtics vs. Pelicans picks, you'll want to see the NBA predictions from the model at SportsLine.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every NBA game 10,000 times and has returned well over $10,000 in profit on its top-rated NBA picks over the past three-plus seasons. The model enters Week 15 of the 2021-22 NBA season on a stunning 58-32 roll on all top-rated NBA picks, returning over $2,100. Anyone following it has seen huge returns.
Now, the model has set its sights on Pelicans vs. Celtics. You can head to SportsLine to see its picks. Here are several NBA betting lines for Pelicans vs. Celtics:
- Pelicans vs. Celtics spread: Celtics -5.5
- Pelicans vs. Celtics over-under: 212 points
What you need to know about the Celtics
The game between Boston and the Atlanta Hawks on Friday was not particularly close, with Boston falling 108-92. Shooting guard Jaylen Brown (26 points) was the top scorer for Boston. Jayson Tatum also had 20 points in the loss but he only went 5-for-17 from the field.
Brown and Tatum are combining to average 50.0 points per game this season but secondary scoring has been an issue at times for the Celtics. Dennis Schroder (15.0 ppg) is the only other player on the roster averaging more than 12 points per game and the Celtics rank 19th in the NBA in offensive rating (109.9).
What you need to know about the Pelicans
Meanwhile, New Orleans received a tough blow on Friday as it fell 116-105 to the Denver Nuggets. Despite the defeat, the Pelicans had strong showings from power forward Herbert Jones, who had 19 points along with seven rebounds and five steals, and center Willy Hernangomez, who posted a double-double on 18 points and 16 boards in addition to three blocks.
With Zion Williamson suffering a setback in his recovery from foot surgery, Brandon Ingram out with an ankle injury and Jonas Valanciunas out because of illness, the Pelicans will be without their top three scoring options. So players like Jones and Hernangomez will have to continue to carry a heavier load.
How to make Celtics vs. Pelicans picks
The model is leaning over on the total and it's also generated a point-spread pick that is hitting in almost 60 percent of simulations. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.
So who wins Pelicans vs. Celtics? And which side covers well over 50 percent of the time? Visit SportsLine now to find out, all from the model that has crushed its NBA picks.
