Lakers vs Pelicans Prediction 4/4/25 NBA Picks Today

The New Orleans Pelicans and the Los Angeles Lakers duke it out at the crypto.com Arena on Friday night.  Here’s a Lakers vs Pelicans Prediction. This article will include a Lakers vs Pelicans Pick.

The New Orleans Pelicans have been in poor form as they’ve lost 11 of their last 15 games overall, but they will be hoping to bounce back after getting trounced by the Clippers in a 114-98 road defeat on Wednesday. Jose Alverado led the team with 17 points and 10 assists, Bruce Brown added 16 points while Kelly Olynyk chipped in with 12 points. As a team, the Pelicans shot 50 percent from the field and a miserly four of 22 from the 3-point line as they got off to a terrible start. They were always fighting a losing battle after scoring just 16 points in the first quarter.

Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Lakers have been in decent form as they’ve won three of their past five games overall. They will be eager to bounce back after having their two-game win streak snapped by the Warriors in a 123-116 home defeat last night. LeBron James led the team with 33 points and nine assists on 10 of 15 shooting, Austin Reaves drained nine 3-pointers to finish with 31 points while Rui Hachimura chipped in with 24 points on nine of 15 shooting. As a team, the Lakers shot 45 percent from the field and 18 of 47 from the 3-point line as they struggled to contain the Warriors’ Stephen Curry from the start. They had to work hard to cut a 16-point deficit to just five points before they ran out of time.

Why the Los Angeles Lakers will win

• The Pelicans have lost each of their last 10 games at Crypto.com Arena against Lakers teams that held a winning record.
• The Lakers have won 11 of their last 12 home games against Western Conference opponents that held a losing record.
• The Pelicans have failed to cover the spread in each of their last six games at Crypto.com Arena against Lakers teams that held a winning record.
• The Lakers have covered the spread in each of their last six games as home favorites when playing with a rest disadvantage.

Why the New Orleans Pelicans will win

• The underdogs have won six of the Lakers’ last seven games.
• The Lakers have lost four of their last five games as favorites.
• The Pelicans have covered the spread in seven of their last eight games against Pacific Division opponents following a loss.
• The Lakers have failed to cover the spread in four of their last five night games against teams that held a losing record.

Matchup/League Facts

• The Lakers rank 30th in the league for field goal attempts per game this season (85.6).
• The Lakers rank 2nd in the league for free throws made per game this season (18.3).
• The Pelicans rank 29th in the league for opponent three-point field goal attempts per game this season (40.0).
• The Pelicans rank 29th in the league for defensive rating this season (119.4).

The Pelicans are still playing without CJ McCollum, Zion Williamson and Trey Murphy, while the Lakers are coming in with a full squad once again. The Pelicans have been plagued by injuries all season, and things have only gotten worse now that they have pulled the plug on the season. In contrast, the Lakers were starting to heat up before last night’s tough loss to the Warriors, but you wouldn’t expect them to struggle in this one as the Pelicans aren’t even interested in trying to win. The line was always going to be hefty, but I think the Lakers will be eager to atone for last night’s poor performance with a bounce-back win and cover in this spot.

Peter Tran's Free Pick: LA Lakers -13.5

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