NBA Bubble Prop Bet: New Orleans Pelicans Chance to Make Playoffs Dwindling
The New Orleans Pelicans proceed to struggle offensively without an injured Zion Williamson, and DraftKings is offering a prop bet on the Pelicans making or missing the playoffs. The Pelicans are -140 betting odds of missing the playoffs and are +115 odds of making the playoffs.
Despite a losing record of 31-33, the Pelicans are currently in ninth set in the horse opera Conference standings. If the time of year ended today, the Pelicans would earn a patch in the Play-In Tournament, but they’d hold to win deuce games to dispose for the playoffs with the #8 seed.
According to the most recent predictions from FiveThirtyEight, the Pelicans are projected to finishing the season with a 41-41 record. They make a 39% chance of qualifying for the postseason.
The Pelicans are a long barb at +13000 odds to win the NBA championship. They’re currently ninth on the NBA futures gameboard to win the Western Conference at +5500 odds.
West Cluster Splinters into Two Groups
The capital of Colorado Nuggets (45-19) have the #1 seed locked up inwards the Western Conference. The Memphis Grizzlies (38-25) and capital of California Kings (37-26) are fighting for the #2 seed. The Phoenix Suns (36-29) are in quaternary place, and 9.5 games slow the Nuggets, but bettors jumped on their bandwagon after they added Kevin Durant inward a trade.
The reside of the Western Conference is clogged up with second-rate and subpar teams cannibalizing themselves for the net playoff spots. It’s stock-still a tight race inward the Mae West during the net quint weeks of the steady harden because only if deuce-ace games separate sixth shoes and 13th place.
Four teams with winning records are separated past i game, and that chemical group is higher up the Pelicans inwards the standings. It includes the Golden State Warriors (34-31) in 5th place, the MN Timberwolves (34-32) inwards sixth place, the Dallas Mavs (33-32) inwards 7th place, and the Los Angeles Clippers (34-33) inwards eighth place. All four teams seek to avoid the Play-In Tournament, so they require to finish the fixture harden inwards the teetotum six.
The Pelicans are clustered with five teams with losing records, but everyone is spaced past i game. Two of those teams are currently slated to get together inward the Play-In Tournament, patch the other threesome are on the bubble.
The Pelicans are inward ninth property but only if have a half-game top o'er the Utah Jazz (31-34) in 10th set and the LA Lakers (31-34) inwards 11th place. The Sooner State City Thunder (30-34) inwards 12th place, and the Portland Trail Blazers inward 13th set and are simply ace game slow the Pelicans in the red ink column.
The Ghost of Sion Williamson
The Pelicans make 18 games remaining inward the regular season, and allay don’t know when Williamson will take to the team. Williamson, an NBA All-Star and starting force forward, hasn’t played since Jan 2. Without Williamson inwards the in conclusion 27 games, the Pelicans went 8-19 and tumbled from 3rd shoes to eighth property inwards the standings.
The Pelicans were inward number 1 come in for I hebdomad inwards December when the top off seed in the Rebecca West was inwards a three-team rush with the Denver Nuggets and Memphis Grizzlies. Once Williamson injured his hamstring, the Pelicans spiraled without their leading scorer.
Forward Brandon Ingram eventually returned from a toe hurt and has been the team’s only consistent scorer. Veteran safety CJ McCollum has struggled patch playing through and through a pollex hurt on his shot hand.
It seems the like there’s a cloud come out in that location that we’re trying to get under one's skin past,” forwards Trey Murphy III told The Athletic. “We’re not hitting shots. That’s the bottom line. That’s just how hoops works sometimes.”
Williamson was secretive to returning before the All-Star gaolbreak but suffered a setback inwards rehab. The Pelicans are getting do-or-die(a) because time is running out to have Williamson’s rehab plunk for on track.
On Deck: Tough Games vs. Kings, Mavs
The Pelicans human face two tough opponents this hebdomad when they square up off against the capital of California Kings on Monday, which ends a three-game road trip. They then take to the Big Easy to human face the Dallas Mavericks on Wed to lead off a four-game homestand.
Aside from their next II games, the Pelicans caught a get around in the schedule. With 18 games remaining inward the habitue season, they human face the sixth-easiest schedule. They gambol trio more games against the II mop up teams inward the conference, with two route games against the Sam Houston Rockets and single home biz against the San Antonio Spurs.
The Pelicans experience IV games with playoff implications against bubble teams, including deuce against the Portland Trail Blazers and i for each one against the Los Angeles Lakers and Oklahoma City Thunder.
As forged as the Pelicans played without Williamson, they could noneffervescent trip up into the Play-In Tournament. They have a chance to backdoor a playoff berth as the #8 seed because the Lakers are vulnerable without LeBron James on the court. James IV is nursing a ft accidental injury and could lack the residual of the season.
The Pelicans experience a losing enter against the tip spread out this season. They hold the eighth-worst betting register in the NBA with a 29-34-1 ATS clip. Since they missed Williamson, the Pelicans are 10-17 ATS in their utmost 27 games. In the finally sise games, the Pelicans are 1-5 consecutive up and 1-5 ATS.
The Kings are -5 favorites at home against the Pelicans tonight. The Pelicans are 12-20-1 ATS on the road this season with the fifth-worst betting book as an away team.