New Orleans Pelicans at Utah Jazz Betting Preview
13 December 2022
The New Orleans Pelicans currently sit atop the Western Conference with an 18-8 record. This season has seen the emergence of Zion Williamson, who leads the team.
Having won seven games in a row this season, the Pelicans will look to win another. This time, they’ll face the Utah Jazz, a team that has struggled immensely this season.
The Utah Jazz has an overall record of 15-14 and rank ninth in the Western Conference. Over their last five games, however, they’ve taken a step back. Losing three of their last five games has them in a rough position.
To continue climbing up the conference, they desperately need to earn a win. The only problem is beating the Pelicans is definitely not an easy task.
New Orleans Pelicans: Zion can lead this team to a win
The last time the New Orleans Pelicans faced the Utah Jazz, the Pelicans lost 122-121. That game was played back in October, however, so a lot has changed.
Zion Williamson leads the team averaging 25 points per game this season. With him and CJ McCollum in the lineup, you can expect their offense to perform incredibly well today.
As a team, the New Orleans Pelicans average 117.6 points per game this season. There are a few injuries worth noting, however. Brandon Ingram has been ruled out for this game, along with Herbert Jones.
One thing that many might not know is that the Pelicans have the eighth-ranked defense. They allow just 110.6 points per game, which is rather impressive.
Utah Jazz: Jazz have struggled to win games lately
The Utah Jazz has gone through quite a few struggles this season. Over the last five games, the Jazz has a record of 2-3. Though they won the first meeting between these two, the Jazz doesn’t seem like a smart pick here.
Lauri Markkanen leads the team with 22.2 points per game. He also leads the team in rebounds at 8.5, but that doesn’t match up to Zion’s stats.
As a team, the Utah Jazz is still one of the highest-scoring teams in the league. They average 117.3 points per game this season, ranking fifth overall.
Their offense is nearly just as strong as the Pelicans, but the scoring hasn’t resulted in wins. Because of this, we think that the Jazz are very unlikely to win this game.
New Orleans Pelicans vs. Utah Jazz Betting Pick
Both of these two teams have very strong offenses, especially the Pelicans. However, the Utah Jazz hasn’t really proven that they can win games.
With a recent 115-110 loss to the Denver Nuggets, we’re going to recommend going with the New Orleans Pelicans. It also helps that the spread only has the Pelicans as 2.5-point favorites.
The New Orleans Pelicans are a strong offensive team and a defensive one. Considering the Utah Jazz have the 22nd-ranked defense in the NBA, the Pelicans should be able to win this one.
DunkelIndex Free Pick: New Orleans Pelicans -2.5, UNDER
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All Media on this page by Associated Press.
