Pelicans vs Hornets Prediction 3/30/25 NBA Picks Today

The Charlotte Hornets and the New Orleans Pelicans collide at the Smoothie King Center on Sunday night. Here’s a Pelicans vs Hornets Prediction. This article will include a Pelicans vs Hornets Pick.

The Charlotte Hornets have been in a real slump as they’ve lost six of their last seven games overall. They will be hoping to snap a four-game slide after getting routed by the Raptors in a 108-97 road defeat on Friday. Mark Williams led the team with 18 points, 12 rebounds and five assists on nine of nine shooting, DaQuan Jeffries added 15 points while KJ Simpson chipped in with 14 points. As a team, the Hornets shot just 40 percent from the field and nine of 31 from the 3-point line as they played great defense to limit the Raptors to just 17 points in the second quarter to overcome an early 13-point deficit. However, they lost their focus and allowed 34 points in the third quarter to get blown out on the road in the end.

Meanwhile, the New Orleans Pelicans have been in a slump of their own as they’ve lost 10 of their last 13 games overall. They will be hoping to bounce back here after getting trounced by the Warriors in a 111-95 loss on Friday. Bruce Brown led the team with 18 points, Yves Missi added 12 points with 10 rebounds while Jose Alverado chipped in with 10 points. As a team, the Pelicans shot just 40 percent from the field and seven of 23 from the 3-point line as they got off to a great start and led for most of the game. Before they went ice-cold and scored just 13 points in the fourth quarter to allow the Warriors to slip away and blow them out in a disappointing finish. Jordan Hawkins had a rough game as he shot just two of 12 for his eight points while Kelly Olynyk finished with just six points on zero of seven shooting before fouling out.

Why the New Orleans Pelicans will win

• The Hornets have lost nine of their last 10 games against Western Conference opponents.
• The Pelicans have won each of their last six games as home favorites.
• The home team has covered the spread in each of the last four games between the Hornets and Pelicans.
• The Hornets have failed to cover the spread in each of their last four games.

Why the Charlotte Hornets will win

• The Hornets have won each of their last five games against Southwest Division opponents that held a losing record.
• The Pelicans have lost each of their last three games as favorites following a home loss.
• The Hornets have covered the spread in each of their last five games against Southwest Division opponents that held a losing record.
• The Pelicans have failed to cover the spread in five of their last six games as favorites against opponents who are on the first leg of a back-to-back.

Matchup/League Facts

• The Pelicans rank 30th in the league for defensive rating this season (119.8).
• The Pelicans rank 29th in the league for point differential per game this season (-8.7).
• The Hornets rank 30th in the league for field goal percentage this season (42.9%).
• The Hornets rank 30th in the league for free throws made per game this season (15.4).

The Hornets have ruled out LaMelo Ball, and they are keeping an eye on Tidjane Salaun who is questionable, while the Pelicans are keeping eyes on Jordan Hawkins and Kelly Olynyk who are both questionable. You couldn’t back either side with any confidence these days, but with Ball being shut down for the season, I prefer a play on the Pelicans, who were more than competitive in their last game against the Warriors. It’s not much, but I will back the Pelicans to get the win and cover at the short line at home.

Peter Tran's Free Pick: New Orleans -3.5

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