The New Orleans Pelicans (30-30, 10-20 Away) will try to break down one of the league’s top shooting defenses when they head to face the New York Knicks (34-27, 16-15 Home) on Saturday. New Orleans was defeated by the Toronto Raptors 115-110 at Scotiabank Arena on Thursday.
With 36 points and seven rebounds, Brandon Ingram was the key player in the losing effort. The Pelicans are eighth in the Western Conference. New York is playing on back-to-back days after winning their fourth in a row yesterday at Capital One Arena, beating the Washington Wizards 115-109.
Julius Randle had 46 points, carrying the team. The Knicks are the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference. It’s the first meeting of the season between the teams. New Orleans and New York split their matchups last season, winning one game apiece. The Pelicans won the last meeting 102-91 at Madison Square Garden in January 2022.
Jonas Valanciunas led the Pelicans with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Mitchell Robinson had 17 points and 15 rebounds in defeat.The Pels have been led this season by CJ McCollum, who is averaging 21.2 points per game. McCollum also has dished 5.9 assists per game. Meanwhile, Valanciunas is grabbing 9.8 rebounds.
Randle (25.1 ppg) and Jalen Brunson (23.8) have been the primary providers for the Knicks on offense. Randle also has pulled down 10.6 rebounds per game, seventh-most in the league, while Brunson has distributed 6.2 assists per game.The Knicks rank as one of the NBA’s toughest FG% defenses, holding opponents to a third-lowest rate of 45.6%.
The teams have split their last 10 games at Madison Square Garden (5-5). New York has won three in a row at home this season. Meanwhile, the Knicks are 5-4 when playing the second of a back-to-back this season and 4-3 in such games against opponents with at least a day of rest. The Pelicans are 3-0 with a rest advantage.
In the last 10 games, New Orleans is 4-6 with an average margin of -2.4 (113.4-115.8). New York has a 7-3 record over the last 10, scoring 116.2 points per game on average while holding opponents to 111.7 (+4.5 margin).
PELICANS HOT/COLD
(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Naji Marshall: 10.0 | 15.9 | -5.9
Points per game:
Brandon Ingram: 30.0 | 23.0 | +7.0
KNICKS HOT/COLD
(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Quentin Grimes: 8.6 | 15.3 | -6.7
Points per game:
Jalen Brunson: 29.8 | 23.8 | +6.0
Quentin Grimes: 5.2 | 10.0 | -4.8
Rebounds per game:
Mitchell Robinson: 12.0 | 9.0 | +3.0
Julius Randle: 7.8 | 10.6 | -2.8
Assists per game:
Julius Randle: 2.6 | 4.1 | -1.5
SportsTips’ NBA Pick:
NY Knicks (-155)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
