NBA Picks and Betting Tips: Golden State Warriors vs New Orleans Pelicans

NLB Staff

30.10.2024 00:13

NBA

As the Golden State Warriors have rebuilt their team into an unbeatable shooting squad, they will face off against a Pelicans team that has started short of expectations once again. With the Warriors beating the Jazz, 127-86, the New Orleans Pelicans lost to the Portland Trail Blazers by nearly 20. The matchup between these two squads will be played on Wednesday, Oct 30th at 7:30 A.M. IST in Smoothie King Center, New Orleans. Below are our player props, betting tips, key injuries, and recent performances to create a potential outcome for the game.

Key Betting Tips & Predictions

1. Golden State Warriors vs New Orleans Pelicans Moneyline Pick

The money line would be +116 for the Warriors and -120 for the Pelicans, but even though it is higher for New Orleans, Golden State has a slight advantage due to their greatness on the road and the Pelicans missing pieces. With New Orleans not having perimeter defenders, it will be a much more high-scoring game. But, the dominance of Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram will continue as they will try to face off against a defense they do statistically well with, individually. As the Warriors are on the road and always find ways to win when they are not favored there, Golden State will hit their money line as they did 3 of the previous 5 times they played New Orleans.

2. Golden State Warriors vs New Orleans Pelicans Point Spread Pick

As the spread for the Warriors is at +1 this game and the Pelicans is -1, it will be a very tight one as both sides have been built very similarly. With the Pelicans having the ability to shoot with stars like Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum creating shots, their ability to move Zion into the open court will help them get over their season average. Having a three-point shooter like Jordan Hawkins who has shown up over the last couple of games, the Pelicans will do their part to get over. Similarly, the Warriors will end up scoring a lot as well with Stephen Curry having a huge advantage over Jose Alvardo and Buddy Hield able to score over Brandon Ingram since Trey Murphy is missing. The Pelicans are 2-1 against the spread this year, while Golden State is 2-0 as an away team.

3. Golden State Warriors vs New Orleans Pelicans Over/Under Pick (Total Points)

The total over/under for this game is 220.5 at 1.83- As the Warriors and Pelicans both have big pieces around them on offense, there should be anticipation for a lot of scoring in this game. As they both have amazing three-point shooting and big men who can score, the defenses will play a little factor, but not as much as people would think. As the last 3 games have combined for over 222 points between these teams, the improvements and adjustments made on both sides will make this game even more high-scoring.

Golden State Warriors vs New Orleans Pelicans Top Player Props

Stephen Curry Over/Under 23.5 points at 1.69- As Stephen Curry will go up against a much smaller Jose Alvardo with Dejounte Murray ruled out, there should be an anticipation of a lot of scoring in this game. As one of the greatest three-point shooters ever, his ability to create shots will be easy in this game because Alvardo doesn’t have the length to reach or cause traps when he is getting set for shots. With Buddy Hield also going to get his attention and other Pelicans having to get the very flexible Andrew Wiggins, Curry will not face many double-teams and instead can just dominate his one-on-one matching by driving or shooting away.

Zion Williamson Over/Under 22.5 points at 1.95- Zion Williamson is going to finally be off his minutes restrictions and play almost the whole game again. Having Andrew Wiggins guard him might be a little tough if he doesn’t get off the first dribble early, but this depends on how Brandon Ingram moves. If he can create a one-on-one fade-away chance, Zion can drive in the lane and hammer home a ton of dunks. As someone who will play at the point as well, he can drive into the lane unless Draymond Green gets a shot to knock his chance to score away. But, if Kevon Looney and Kuminga are in, Zion’s athleticism will take over which could lead to a very strong game for him.

Injury News & Impact

Golden State Warriors Injuries: As Stephen Curry is highly likely to play after resting his knee, the Warriors will once again have their full load and hope to build the chemistry to dominate a somewhat weak Pelicans defense.

New Orleans Pelicans Injuries: With this team playing without Trey Murphy III since the beginning of the year, they lost another star in Dejounte Murray. Someone who put in 14 points and 10 assists during his first start, his presence on both ends of the floor will be missed as Jose Alvardo will have a lot of shoes to fill in now. As a much smaller guard than Murray, they will have a tougher time to attack the basket without Zion or Brandon Ingram getting the ball to dunk.

Head-to-Head Trends

As the Warriors have won 3 of the last 5 matchups against the Pelicans, there has been a mix of blowouts and tight games over the past couple of seasons. With a 2-game winning streak against Golden State, the Pelicans have shown a lot of growth in this matchup and made this a much closer game according to stats. Given that 3 of the past 4 matches have ended in a combined score of 235+ points, the Pelicans have been 2-3 against the spread when playing the Warriors over the previous 5 games. Over the past 3 matches, both teams have scored over 100 points each while the Warriors have averaged 114.6 points during these games.

Betting Insights & Public Trends

According to the public trends, 50% of the betters are backing the Pelicans, while the other half are going with the Warriors.

Final Prediction

With the Golden State Warriors entering this game as one of the best three-point shooting teams, they will have a huge advantage over the Pelicans as most of New Orleans's top wing defenders are out. Having no Dejounte Murray or Trey Murphy III to guard the top of the key will help Stephen Curry continue to dominate the three-point game. Meanwhile, the emergence of Buddy Hield has proved vital and even though CJ McCollum can have his moments as a defender, Heild is just one of those guys he will have a very tough time against. With an inexperienced Yves Missi at the center and Zion Williamson’s rebounding inconsistencies, many big men like Kevon Looney and Draymond will be able to crash the glass well. The one thing is if Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson can do their job on defense by shutting down Andrew Wiggins plus Johnathon Kuminga, their all-around games could help the Pelicans win.

Our Prediction: Golden State Warriors will win and cover +1 spread and the total will go over 220.5 points