Oklahoma City Thunder vs New Orleans Pelicans Prediction, 3/26/2024 Preview and Pick

Game: Oklahoma City Thunder vs New Orleans Pelicans

Date: Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Location: Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, LA

TV: Bally Sports New Orleans

The Oklahoma City Thunder (49-21) are on their way to Smoothie King Center on Tuesday where they will take on the New Orleans Pelicans (44-27).

The Thunder took the court against the Bucks and ended up losing by a score of 118-93 in their last game. Oklahoma City walked away from the contest with a 37.1% FG percentage (33 out of 89) and knocked down 10 out of their 43 shots from beyond the perimeter. At the charity stripe, the Thunder converted 17 of 22 shots for a rate of 77.3%. In regard to getting rebounds, they earned a total of 37 with 10 of them being of the offensive variety. They also dished out 20 assists for the game as well as creating 16 turnovers and getting 9 steals. Regarding defense, Oklahoma City let their opponent shoot 53.3% from the floor on 49 of 92 shooting. Milwaukee distributed 33 dimes and had 7 steals in this game. In addition, Milwaukee collected 57 rebounds (15 offensive, 42 defensive) and got 1 block. Milwaukee ended up shooting 64.3% at the charity stripe by knocking down 9 of their 14 attempts. They made 11 out of their 34 attempts from 3-point land. When it comes to fouls, the Thunder left the arena with 16 while the Bucks finished the game with 21 fouls.

Josh Giddey is a guy who was a contributor in this contest. Giddey finished 58.3% from the field and dished out 8 dimes. He played for 29 mins and also totaled 9 rebounds. He notched 19 points on 7 out of 12 shooting.

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Oklahoma City enters this matchup with a win-loss record of 49-21 on the campaign. They lose possession via turnover 12.5 times per game and as a unit are committing 19.2 fouls on a nightly basis. As a unit, Oklahoma City is pulling in 41.8 boards per game and is sitting with 1,878 dimes on the year, which is 15th in the NBA in terms of passing. The Thunder are hitting 38.9% on shots from distance (934 of 2,400) and 83.0% from the charity stripe. They average 120.3 points per outing (4th in the league) while hitting 49.8% from the field.

On the defensive end, the Thunder are forcing 15.8 turnovers per contest and they draw 19.0 personal fouls. They are surrendering 36.3% on 3-point attempts and they are ranked 13th in the NBA in points per game allowed (112.9). The Thunder defense is giving up an opponent FG percentage of 45.6% (2,846 of 6,238) and they surrender 44.9 boards per contest as a unit. They are ranked 18th in the league in giving up assists to the opposition with 1,894 surrendered on the year.

The last time they took the court, the Pelicans got the victory with a final of 114-101 when they faced the Pistons. When it comes to how they cleaned up the glass, New Orleans permitted Detroit to pull down 46 in total (10 on the offensive glass). They finished 26.8% from distance by connecting on 11 out of 41 and finished the game at 26 of 32 at the free throw line (81.3%). The Pelicans allowed the Pistons to knock down 32 out of their 79 tries from the field which had them sitting at 40.5% in this game. At the conclusion of this game, the Pelicans ended up going 41 for 81 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 50.6%. When discussing shots from beyond the arc, New Orleans made 11 out of 34 attempts (32.4%). They were able to make 21 of the free throw attempts for a percentage of 67.7%. The Pistons committed 25 personal fouls for this contest which took the Pelicans to the charity stripe for 31 tries. They turned it over 10 times, while earning 8 steals in this game. The Pelicans collected 35 defensive boards and 6 offensive rebounds for a total of 41 for the matchup.

Zion Williamson ended up having an impact for the Pelicans for this game. He buried 13 out of 14 for the matchup giving him a rate of 92.9%, and had 7 rebounds. Williamson accumulated 36 points in his 36 mins on the court and totaled 6 assists in this matchup.

New Orleans has a win-loss mark of 44-27 this year. In terms of offensive execution, the Pelicans are shooting 49.0% from the floor, which has them ranked 8th in basketball. New Orleans has scored 8,217 points for the year (115.7 per game) and they average 44.5 boards per game. Their rate of assisting teammates is at 27.1 times per contest (11th in the league) and they lose possession by turning the ball over 13.2 times per contest. The Pelicans are committing 18.7 personal fouls per game and they hit 76.6% from the charity stripe.

The New Orleans defense concedes 34.4% on shots from beyond the perimeter (950 of 2,763) and opponents are knocking down 78.3% of their free throw attempts. They allow 26.6 dimes and 42.2 total boards per game, ranking them 13th and 8th in the league. The Pelicans on defense are ranked 8th in basketball in points per game surrendered with 110.4. They are forcing 14.1 TO's every game and have let teams shoot 45.9% from the floor (5th in the league).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Oklahoma City

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