New Orleans Pelicans vs Miami Heat Prediction, 3/22/2024 Preview and Pick

Game: New Orleans Pelicans vs Miami Heat

Date: Friday, March 22, 2024

Location: Kaseya Center in Miami, FL

TV: Bally Sports Sun

The Miami Heat (38-31) are welcoming the New Orleans Pelicans (42-26) at Kaseya Center on Friday.

The Pelicans stepped onto the hardwood against the Nets and took home the win by a score of 104-91 in their last contest. When it comes to fouls, the Pelicans left the arena with 19 and the Nets totaled 13 fouls. They knocked down 12 out of their 40 attempts from 3-point range. Brooklyn finished shooting 77.3% from the free throw line by knocking down 17 of their 22 shots. Additionally, Brooklyn pulled down 42 rebounds (14 offensive, 28 defensive) and had 5 rejections. Brooklyn distributed 19 dimes and had 6 steals in the matchup. When discussing defense, New Orleans let their opponent shoot 36.9% from the floor on 31 out of 84 shooting. They also recorded 29 dimes for the matchup while forcing 13 turnovers and having 7 steals. With respect to rebounding, they compiled 48 with 11 of them being on the offensive end. At the free throw line, the Pelicans buried 10 of 13 attempts for a percentage of 76.9%. New Orleans wrapped up the game with a 50.6% field goal percentage (42 of 83) and made 10 out of their 34 three-point attempts.

Zion Williamson is someone who had an impact in this game. Williamson finished 68.8% from the floor and also earned 4 dimes. He played 33 minutes and also snagged 7 boards. He left the arena with 28 points on 11 of 16 shooting.

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New Orleans comes into this one with a mark of 42-26 so far this season. They are averaging 116.0 points per contest (13th in the league) on 48.9% from the floor. The Pelicans are shooting 38.0% on shots from distance (837 of 2,203) and 76.8% from the charity stripe. As a unit, New Orleans is snagging 44.6 boards per game and has totaled 1,850 dimes for the campaign, which is 12th in the NBA in terms of passing the ball. They lose possession by turning the ball over 13.2 times per contest and as a squad they commit 18.7 fouls per game.

On defense, the Pelicans are able to force 14.2 turnovers per contest while drawing 18.6 personal fouls. They are currently ranked 12th in the league in giving up assists to their opponents with 1,812 conceded on the season. The Pelicans are giving up an opponent FG percentage of 45.9% (2,745 of 5,975) and they surrender 42.3 rebounds per game as a basketball team. They give up 34.6% from 3-point land and they are ranked 8th in the league in opponents points per game (110.7).

When they last stepped on the hardwood, the Heat took home the win by a final score of 107-104 when they faced the Cavaliers. Concerning how they rebounded, Miami allowed Cleveland to grab 37 in total (6 on the offensive glass). They went 35.7% from downtown by shooting 15 of 42 and finished the contest at 19 out of 22 at the free throw line (86.4%). The Heat allowed the Cavaliers to make 35 of 75 tries from the field which gave them a percentage of 46.7% in this matchup. When the final whistle blew, the Heat shot 38 out of 83 from the field which gave them a percentage of 45.8%. Regarding three-point attempts, Miami buried 13 out of 36 tries (36.1%). They were able to bury 18 of the free throws for a rate of 94.7%. The Cavaliers had 19 personal fouls for the game which took the Heat to the charity stripe for a total of 19 tries. They also gave up possession of the ball 7 times, while getting 7 steals for the contest. The Heat collected 30 defensive boards and 7 offensive boards for a total of 37 in this matchup.

Jimmy Butler ended up being a factor for the Heat in this contest. Butler totaled 30 points in his 37 minutes on the hardwood and added 5 assists for the contest. He made 11 out of 19 for the matchup for a field goal rate of 57.9%, and tallied 4 rebounds.

Miami has a win-loss mark of 38-31 on the year. The Heat commit 17.6 fouls every game and they shoot 81.3% from the free throw line. They are dishing out assists 25.6 times per contest (21st in the league) and they lose possession by turning the ball over 12.7 times per game. Miami has tallied 7,570 pts so far this season (109.7 per contest) and they collect 42.2 boards per contest. As an offensive unit, the Heat are hitting on 46.4% from the floor, which is ranked 23rd in the NBA.

The Heat on the defensive end are ranked 4th in basketball in PPG given up with 109.2. They are forcing their opponents into 13.7 turnovers on a nightly basis and have allowed teams to shoot 46.9% from the floor (11th in the NBA). The Miami defense gives up 36.0% from downtown (915 of 2,542) and opponents are knocking down 77.6% of their shots from the charity stripe. They surrender 26.7 assists and 42.9 boards every game, which is ranked 15th and 12th in the league.

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take New Orleans

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