New Orleans Pelicans vs New York Knicks Prediction, 4/18/2021 NBA Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: New Orleans Pelicans vs New York Knicks

Date: Sunday, April 18, 2021

Location: Madison Square Garden in New York, NY

TV: ESPN

Odds/Point Spread: New Orleans (+2.5)

The New Orleans Pelicans (25-31) are headed to Madison Square Garden on Sunday where they'll meet the New York Knicks (30-27). New Orleans opens this game as 2.5-point underdogs. The over/under has been set at 221.

The New Orleans Pelicans stepped onto the hardwood against the Washington Wizards and took a loss by a score of 117-115 in their last contest. New Orleans finished the game having earned a 41.2% field goal percentage (40 out of 97) and converted 7 of their 28 shots from beyond the arc. When they shot from the free throw line, the Pelicans knocked down 28 of 33 attempts for a rate of 84.8%. When talking about rebounding, they earned a total of 56 with 11 of them being offensive. They also recorded 26 assists for the contest as well as forcing the other team into 13 turnovers and earning 11 steals. When it comes to defending, New Orleans allowed their opponent to shoot 46.9% from the field on 45 out of 96 shooting. Washington recorded 24 dimes and had 5 steals in this game. On top of that, Washington pulled down 46 rebounds (3 offensive, 43 defensive) and got 7 blocked shots. Washington ended up going 71.9% when shooting free throws by making 23 of their 32 tries. They also converted 4 out of their 27 attempts from long range.

Brandon Ingram is one guy who was important for this contest. He finished with 34 points on 12 out of 27 shooting. He saw the court for 42:11 minutes played and also totaled 7 rebounds. Ingram ended up shooting 44.4% from the floor and distributed 5 assists. An additional guy that was a determining factor in the matchup for the Pelicans was Zion Williamson. He pulled down 6 rebounds in 31:17 min played on the night. He finished the game shooting 50.0% from the floor for the game by connecting on 9-of-18 (21 points). Overall, Williamson wasn't able to get an assist.

New Orleans comes into this game with a record of 25-31 for the season. They lose possession by turning the ball over 14.5 times per contest and as a unit are committing 17.8 fouls every game. As a unit, New Orleans is collecting 46.9 rebounds per game and has totaled 1,456 assists on the year, which ranks 10th in the NBA in terms of passing the rock. The Pelicans are hitting 34.9% on 3-point shots (602 of 1,725) and 73.7% from the charity stripe. They average 114.5 points per game (8th in basketball) while going 48.1% from the field. When they are on defense, the Pelicans have forced 13.0 turnovers every game while drawing 21.3 fouls. The Pelicans defense is allowing an opponent shooting percentage of 47.2% (726 of 1,191) and they relinquish 40.7 boards per contest as a unit. They are currently ranked 26th in the NBA in giving up assists with 1,458 surrendered on the season. They relinquish 38.9% on shots from downtown and they are ranked 26th in basketball in opponents PPG (115.0).

When they last stepped on the court, the New York Knicks went home victorious with a score of 117-109 against the Dallas Mavericks. The Knicks snagged 36 defensive boards and 9 offensive boards totaling 45 for the contest. They also coughed up the ball 9 times, while getting 4 steals in the game. The Mavericks were called for 17 personal fouls for this contest which got the Knicks to the free throw line for a total of 21 shots. They were able to knock down 15 of the free throw tries for a rate of 71.4%. In reference to 3-point attempts, New York buried 14 of their 28 attempts (50.0%). Overall, the Knicks ended up going 44 out of 86 from the field which had them at 51.2%. The Knicks permitted the Mavericks to make 40 of their 91 attempts from the field which had them sitting at 44.0% in this matchup. They shot 33.3% from downtown by going 15 of 45 and ended up going 14 out of 19 at the free throw line (73.7%). With respect to how they attacked the glass, New York allowed Dallas to collect 41 overall (10 offensive).

Julius Randle pitched in for the Knicks for this contest. He knocked down 16 of 29 for this game for a rate of 55.2%, and totaled 10 rebounds. Randle accumulated 44 points in his 40:38 mins of playing time and added 7 assists for the matchup. One more player that was important for New York was RJ Barrett. He left the arena with 2 dimes in his 46:06 minutes played, and he knocked down 9 out of 18 from the floor. Barrett ended up shooting 50.0% from the field as well as collecting 24 points and 8 rebounds.

New York has a mark of 30-27 for the season. New York has 6,032 points on the campaign (105.8 per contest) and they pull in 45.6 rebounds per contest. The Knicks are responsible for committing 20.7 fouls per contest and they shoot 77.2% from the charity stripe. As an offense, the Knicks are shooting 45.2% from the floor, which ranks 23rd in the league. They are earning an assist 21.0 times per contest (29th in the NBA) and they cough up possession 13.3 times per contest. The Knicks on the defensive end are ranked 1st in the league in PPG given up with 104.3. They are able to force 12.9 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 44.2% from the field (1st in the NBA). The New York defense concedes 33.6% from downtown (681 of 2,028) and opponents are connecting on 75.8% of their shots from the free throw line. They have surrendered 23.1 assists and 43.6 rebounds every game, which has them ranked 5th and 13th in the NBA.

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take New York (-2.5)

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