NBA: Brooklyn Nets vs New Orleans Pelicans Preview, Odds, Prediction

The Brooklyn Nets aren’t that convincing in recent times, but they want to change that against the New Orleans Pelicans. Zion and the boys are coming back home to meet the No.1 candidates for the title after three straight losses, having the pressure of winning. Van Gundy’s side might be eliminated from the playoff race if they continue to play like this. The guests from the East Coast will try to take advantage of that and win Tuesday’s game, which marks the start of a tough schedule for them.

Preview

Brooklyn Nets (38-19, TBA) have subsequent wins and losses in the past six games, but what is more important for them is Kevin Durant’s health. All the current results don’t matter as long as the Nets start the playoffs completely healthy. Even if they finish 8th in the East (which is not going to happen), having KD, Harden, and Kyrie ready for the postseason will erase all that.

Now, Brooklyn lost at home to the Miami Heat in the most recent game, with Bam Adebayo scoring a mid-range jumper as time expired, 109-107. Kevin Durant opened the game with 8 points in four minutes before exiting due to a thigh contusion. However, he was seen after the game near the sidelines chatting with Harden, so this shouldn’t be a major issue.

Landry Shamet scored 30 points in this match, hitting seven threes in 12 attempts. Kyrie Irving added 20 with nine assists, and Joe Harris 12. Heat heavily outrebounded the Nets, 53-38, which has also caused a lot of trouble for the home team.

New Orleans Pelicans (25-32, TBA) have three consecutive defeats against Knicks at home and then against the Wizards and the Knicks on the road, bot after overtime. We saw some frustration following the latest loss at the Madison Square Garden, especially at Stan Van Gundy, who wasn’t happy at all with the outcome of the match (122-112) and the way his team played in the extra five minutes.

Zion scored 34 points, with nine boards and five assists, but he couldn’t slow down Julius Randle, who had one point fewer. Eric Bledsoe dropped 22, shooting 8-for-20, while Brandon Ingram had just 19 with six hits in 18 shots.

The biggest problem for the Pelicans was the three-point shooting. The entire team made just six threes in 27 attempts, which is a lousy percentage (22.2%).

Head to Head Games

Brooklyn rolled over the Pels in the first meeting of the year, 139-111. Durant returned to the court following his pause, scoring 17 points in 19 minutes, not missing a single shot. Kyrie scored 24 points, and Aldridge 22. Bledsoe had 26 for the Pelicans, and Zion just 16, 4-for-12 from the field.

Prediction

With or without Durant involved, the Nets should defeat the Pelicans. We are aware that the team from Brooklyn has certain issues, like KD’s and Harden’s injury, and that they recently lost Aldridge, but still, they are much better than the struggling Pelicans. The home team is on a downhill, and all the prognosis from before the season about their playoff appearance will probably be wrong.

Pick: Brooklyn Nets win.