NBA: New Orleans Pelicans VS Boston Celtics Pick and Predictions 01/11/2023

Game: 7:40 PM ET,  Wednesday, January 11th, 2023

Venue:  TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts

TV:  NBA League Pass

Pelicans: 25-16, 3rd place Western Conference

Celtics: 29-12, 1st place Eastern Conference

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Celtics -9.5, O/U 229.5

PointsBet: Point Spread: Celtics -9.5, O/U 229.5

Fanduel: Point Spread: Celtics -9.5, O/U 229

Pelicans: SF Naji Marshall, PF Trey Murphy III, C Jonas Valanciunas, SG CJ McCollum, PG Herbert Jones

Celtics: SF Jayson Tatum, PF Al Horford, C Robert Williams III, SG Jaylen Brown, PG Derrick White

 

It’s an NBA battle West Vs East.  The Pelicans sit at third in the standings in the Western Conference, a rare place for a team with their history.  The Celtics sit at first in the Eastern Conference standings with the best record in the league, a common spot for a team with their history.  The New Orleans Pelicans have grown and grown since they won a trade with the Lakers for Anthony Davis 3 years ago… yes the Lakers got a Championship… but the Pelicans got so many pieces and players… that they have been swapping and trading and drafting their way into a powerhouse ever since.  The Boston Celtics won a trade with the Brooklyn Nets a decade ago and got so many draft picks that they have been Drafting their way in to the league’s #1 powerhouse.  Into all great stories a little rain must fall… so at the moment the Pelicans are suffering to maintain while missing 2 of their 3 best players to injury… The Celtics recently suffered the injury bug to their few quality big men, but they returned just in time to fend off Brooklyn’s challenge for first place in the East.  These are good teams though the Pelicans are hobbled.  The Great Betting opportunity here will be found in determining how many points the Celtics will win this game by…. Let's check the numbers. 

 

The New Orleans Pelicans have won 6 of their last 10 games… recently taking tough losses to Dallas and Brooklyn.  However they won their last game against the Washington Wizards 132-112. In that win SG CJ McCollum came through for the injury ridden team by scoring 34 points with 5 rebounds and 1 assist in just 30 minutes. He was supported by C Jonas Valanciunas who torched Washington’s big men for 27 points, 12 rebounds, and 1 assist in 28 minutes.  Pelicans backup point guards Jose Alvarado and Devonte Graham both scored small double figures in mop up minutes as the game quickly got out of hand and the Wizards were beaten long before it ended. The injuries are a real disadvantage in that this team is and will be missing SF Brandon Ingram and PF Zion Williamson… Those guys are the two best the Pelicans have.

 

The Celtics are on a 3-game winning streak to lift them to winners of 7 of their last 10 games.  The Brooklyn Nets just a few games ago took the first place standing for a day… but the Celtics immediately took it back and rebuilt a 2-game lead over Brooklyn in the East.  In their last win over the Chicago Bulls 107-99 the Celtics actually lost ATS which was a generous 9.5 for the underdog Bulls.  In the win SF Jayson Tatum had 32 points, 8 rebounds, and 7 assists… SG Jaylen Brown landed 19,5,3… 20 points were thrown in by PF Grant Williams from a reserve roll and the team simply did not need much more to beat the struggling Chicago Bulls.

 

 

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NO: 25-16, 21-20 ATS, 24-17 O/U, 8-11 in road games.

BOS: 29-12, 21-19-1 ATS, 21-19-1 O/U, and 16-5 in home games.

The Pelicans are 4th in the league in scoring with 117.4 points per game, 6th in rebounds with 45.5 per game, 19th in AST/TO ratio with 1.7, and 20th in blocks with 4.4 per game.

The Celtics are 2nd in scoring with 118.5 points per game, 11th in rebounds with 44 per game, 1st in AST/To ratio with 2.0, and 5th in blocked shots with 5.4 per game.

Our prediction for Wednesday, January 11th is…. Celtics 128 - Pelicans 108

Bet on the Celtics.  The Pelicans don’t have a lot of health at the moment and their best player on the court will be SG CJ McCollum…. Who is particularly vulnerable to the defense of Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum… long armed, athletic, wing players.  

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The Pelicans are 1-5 ATS as an underdog of 3.5 to 9.5 this season.

The Celtics are 29-14 ATS after failing to cover the spread in their last 2 games.

Pelicans:  SF Najee Marshall.  In the absence of Brandon Ingram, Naji has gotten quite a few starts.  He has had a couple of big games too… like 24 points against Dallas… 23 points against Brooklyn… 18 against Washington with a +19 for the Pelicans while he was on the floor. Other teams like Indiana, Lakers, Mavs, Bulls… may all come calling soon.  He is a buried talent when Ingram is healthy.

Celtics: C Robert Williams III… He has only recently returned to the line-up.  The Celtics are hoping to limit his minutes when they can to preserve his health and avoid further rehab…. But the Celtics defense AND offense work better when he is on the court.

Pelicans: Willie “Mr Cool” Green

Celtics: Joe “who?” Mazzula