The New Orleans Pelicans (26-18) will try to notch consecutive wins for the first time in more than two weeks when they face the Oklahoma City Thunder (31-13) on Friday night. New Orleans bounced back from a loss to Phoenix with a 153-124 win over Utah on Tuesday, moving into sixth place in the Western Conference standings. Oklahoma City has rattled off a four-game winning streak, including a 140-114 win over San Antonio on Wednesday. The Thunder are a half-game back of Minnesota for first place in the Western Conference standings.
Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. ET on Friday at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans. The Pelicans are favored by 1 point in the latest Thunder vs. Pelicans odds, while the over/under is 240 points, per SportsLine consensus. Before entering any Pelicans vs. Thunder 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 for $100 players on its top-rated NBA picks over the past five-plus seasons. The model enters Week 14 of the 2023-24 NBA season on a sizzling 48-25 roll on all top-rated NBA picks this season, returning over $2,200. Anyone following it has seen huge returns.
The model has set its sights on Oklahoma City vs. New Orleans. You can head to SportsLine to see its picks. Here are several NBA odds and betting lines for Thunder vs. Pelicans:
- Pelicans vs. Thunder spread: Pelicans -1
- Pelicans vs. Thunder over/under: 240 points
- Pelicans vs. Thunder money line: Pelicans: -115, Thunder: -105
- Pelicans vs. Thunder picks: See picks at SportsLine
Why the Pelicans can cover
New Orleans set a franchise record for points in a game when it cruised to a 153-124 win over Utah on Tuesday night. The Pelicans can clinch the three-game series between these teams with a win, as they beat Oklahoma City in a 110-106 final on Nov. 1 in the first meeting. CJ McCollum scored a team-high 33 points in the win over the Jazz, while Zion Williamson posted a double-double with 17 points and 11 assists.
The Pelicans shot 57.7% from the floor and knocked down 23 of 46 attempts from 3-point range, coming two 3-pointers shy of the franchise record that they set two games earlier. They dished out a franchise-record 41 assists on 60 made field goals in the onslaught. New Orleans has covered the spread in eight of its last 12 games, and it has won four of the last six meetings between these teams. See which team to pick here.
Why the Thunder can cover
Oklahoma City is riding a four-game winning streak and is just a half-game back of Minnesota for the top spot in the Western Conference. The Thunder have already won three road games during their current winning streak, including a huge win over the Timberwolves last Saturday. They added wins over the Trail Blazers and Spurs earlier this week, scoring 140 points against San Antonio.
The Thunder shot 56.3% from the floor and 45% from 3-point range in that win, as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 32 points and dished out 10 assists before sitting out during the fourth quarter. He is averaging a team-high 31.1 points and 6.4 assists per game, while Jalen Williams is adding 18.7 points. Oklahoma City has covered the spread in 11 of the last 16 meetings between these teams and six of its last nine games this season. See which team to pick here.
How to make Pelicans vs. Thunder picks
The model has simulated Thunder vs. Pelicans 10,000 times and the results are in. We can tell you that the model is leaning Under, and it's also generated a point-spread pick that is hitting in well over 50% of simulations. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.
So who wins Pelicans vs. Thunder, and which side of the spread hits well over 50% of the time? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the Thunder vs. Pelicans spread you need to jump on, all from the model on a 48-25 roll on top-rated NBA picks this season, and find out.
