In our NBA predictions for Thursday, we’re breaking down the interconference clash from Smoothie King Center in New Orleans to find out the best Bulls vs Pelicans betting pick and odds. Chicago heads to Louisiana as a 3.5-point favorite, looking to sweep the Pelicans regular-season series for the second straight year. Back in October, Chicago trounced New Orleans 128-112 as a 6.5-point home fave, recording its third consecutive victory over the Pels.
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Bulls vs Pelicans Betting Pick
This game will be played at Smoothie King Center at 8:00 PM ET on Thursday, March 24, 2022.
Why Bet The Pelicans:
✅ The Bulls will probably miss DeMar DeRozan due to a left adductor strain. DeRozan, who’s been the Bulls’ best player so far this season, played 36 minutes in each of Chicago’s previous two contests, so the Bulls are obviously playing it safe. The Pelicans also have injury problems, as Brandon Ingram (hamstring) is listed as doubtful, but DeRozan’s absence will certainly help New Orleans’ case in this matchup.
✅ Both Chicago and New Orleans desperately need a win. While the Bulls are trying to avoid the play-in tournament in the East, the Pels are looking to maintain their two-game lead ahead of the No. 11 seed in the West. Chicago has struggled mightily on the road as of late, so I think the Pelicans will keep it close in front of the home fans. The Bulls have gone only 1-7 straight up and 0-8 ATS in their last eight games away from home.
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✅ I’m looking for C.J. McCollum and Jonas Valanciunas to lift the Pels over the Bulls. This duo has done a superb job for New Orleans over the last few weeks. McCollum has averaged 25.6 points and 7.4 assists in his last eight outings, while Valanciunas has posted 18.8 points and 10.9 rebounds over his last ten contests. The Bulls are not a great defensive team, as they surrender 112.7 points per 100 possessions (21st in the league).
Chicago Bulls
The Bulls have gone only 3-9 straight up and 2-10 ATS in their last 12 games overall. They fell to the sixth spot of the Eastern Conference standings and are just a couple of games ahead of the No. 7 seed.
Chicago snapped its three-game skid last Monday, outlasting the Toronto Raptors 113-99 as a 3.5-point home fave on the first day of a back-to-back. The Bulls suffered a heavy 126-98 defeat on Tuesday, failing to cover a 6.5-point spread in Wisconsin. They started a five-game road trip on the wrong foot, allowing the Bucks to make 61.0% of their field goals.
New Orleans Pelicans
The Pelicans finished their three-game road trip last Monday, suffering a tough 106-103 defeat at the Charlotte Hornets. After beating San Antonio 124-91 as 2-point dogs and Atlanta 117-112 as 5-point dogs, the Pels nearly upset the Hornets as 5.5-point minnows.
New Orleans blew an eight-point fourth-quarter lead at Charlotte. C.J. McCollum accounted for 27 points and six assists, while Jonas Valanciunas posted a 24-point, 18-rebound double-double, but it wasn’t enough. The rest of the team didn’t help a lot, and the Pels allowed the Hornets to dish out 34 assists.