NBA 2022/23, on Friday, 23.12.2022
My Pelicans Spurs tip makes it immediately clear to the reader why there can be no talk of a crisis for the Pels despite their mounting defeats.
Rather, I explain in a nutshell why the home side will return to winning ways in their familiar living room – the Smoothie King Center. Because the opponent should cause them far fewer problems this time…
The Pelicans have been one of the surprises of the season, but recently the failures have been piling up at an unnatural rate. After all, we’re talking about a franchise that, until recently, never lost two consecutive season games.
But the reality now is that New Orleans has lost four in a row – three of them away from home. The same defence that was considered the NBA’s third-best last week has allowed over 121.5 points per 100 possessions over that span.
Back at the Smoothie King Center, it was the Bucks who handed the Southerners their last loss so far. However, Milwaukee is also a good cue to explain why the setbacks have been mounting of late.
The Utah Jazz, against whom they lost a doubleheader, the Phoenix Suns and the aforementioned Bucks are all teams with a positive NBA record, against whom you can lose a game on a bad day.
The upcoming opponents, on the other hand, should be much easier to play against, especially since San Antonio has a lousy offence and can even outdo it with an even worse defence.
According to the current power rankings, they are only 28th and 30th of all NBA teams in both categories. Consequently, Valanciunas, Jones and Williamson should have far fewer problems defending their own half-court this time around.
The Pels, in my eyes, will be lucky to even win the game tonight. While I think New Orleans is the undoubtedly better team, at the same time the visitors aren’t as bad as their 10-20 record might lead you to believe.
I would therefore rule out an overly bold handicap bet, especially as New Orleans have visibly struggled of late. Nonetheless, the Spurs are a squad that can really only compete when the opponent allows it.
Hardly any franchise in the NBA is more unsuccessful against over-500 teams. San Antonio, for example, has won only four of its last 17 NBA games. Apart from the Cavaliers, none of the four defeated teams had a positive record.
Furthermore, I feel good about putting my money on the Pels because they have no shutouts to complain about and have already dominated the upcoming opponent several times this season with their rugged style of play.
In the current NBA season alone, there have been three meetings: Two regular season games and one preparation game, all of which went to New Orleans by at least 14 points.
The last showdown was less than three weeks ago. On that occasion, the Pelicans managed a convincing 117-99 win as guests in San Antonio. Nevertheless, I expect another convincing win tonight – but nothing more!
The situation on the betting markets is exactly as I had expected – even if the Pelicans Spurs odds unfortunately do not allow me to make a classic 1X2 bet in this form.
Because the odds of 1.26 on average that the betting providers are currently offering for a success of the home side are far too low to be considered as a single bet.
The 3.45 for a Spurs win has been set much higher, but I consider the plan to snatch a win from the Smoothie King Center to be pretty hopeless.
Incidentally, the Bwin app is currently one of the most popular sports betting apps for mobile phones. The bookmaker of the same name impresses with a wide range of bets and plenty of options for exciting live bets.
Conclusion: The Pelicans have just lost four games in a row, which is actually unheard of for a team with their capabilities. However, losing to the Jazz, Suns, and especially the Bucks is entirely possible.
Another loss to the Spurs, however, would fall well off the grid. After all, San Antonio has only been able to defeat an over-500 team once in its last 17 NBA games.
The Pels will take control of the game early at home, where they feel at home, but I don’t expect them to win by a landslide.
The Texans have proven on several occasions that they are not a winning team, but that they can at least put up a brave fight.
My Pelicans Spurs tip: Pels win with a handicap of -5.5.
