Sacramento Kings vs New Orleans Pelicans Prediction, 12/12/2024 Preview and Pick

Game: Sacramento Kings vs New Orleans Pelicans

Date: Thursday, December 12, 2024

Location: Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, LA

TV: TNT

The Sacramento Kings (12-13) are traveling to Smoothie King Center on Thursday where they will take on the New Orleans Pelicans (5-20).

The Kings faced off with the Jazz and walked away with a win by a score of 141-97 in their last contest. Concerning personal fouls, the Kings ended up walking away with 17 while the Jazz recorded 17 personal fouls. They also buried 15 out of their 42 attempts from beyond the perimeter. Utah went 95.2% when shooting free throws by making 20 of their 21 shots. Furthermore, Utah collected 38 rebounds (9 offensive, 29 defensive) and got 7 blocked shots. Utah doled out 21 dimes and had 6 steals in this contest. Concerning defending, Sacramento allowed the other team to shoot 38.8% from the floor on 31 of 80 shooting. They also dished out 39 dimes in this matchup in addition to forcing the other team into 20 turnovers and earning 10 steals. In terms of getting rebounds, they collected 43 with 9 of them being of the offensive variety. At the free throw line, the Kings buried 5 of 8 tries for a percentage of 62.5%. Sacramento wrapped up the game having earned a 57.0% field goal percentage (57 of 100) and made 22 of 44 three-point shots.

Kevin Huerter is someone who was important in the game. He recorded 26 points on 10 out of 14 shooting. He played for 22 minutes and collected 5 boards. Huerter finished the game shooting 71.4% from the field and totaled 4 assists.

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Sacramento comes into this one with a mark of 12-13 on the campaign. They average 116.4 points per contest (9th in the NBA) while shooting 48.6% from the field. The Kings are hitting 34.6% on 3-point shots (302 of 873) and 79.5% from the charity stripe. As a unit, Sacramento is snagging 43.2 rebounds per contest and has racked up 646 dimes this season, which is 11th in basketball in terms of passing. They lose possession via turnover 13.6 times per contest and as a unit are committing 20.2 fouls every game.

When they are on defense, the Kings are forcing 15.4 turnovers per game and they draw 19.4 personal fouls. They are currently ranked 20th in the NBA in giving up assists to the opposition with 640 conceded for the year. The Kings defense is giving up a shooting percentage of 45.9% (1,002 of 2,182) and they surrender 41.8 rebounds per contest as a unit. They give up 37.7% from beyond the arc and they are 18th in the NBA in points per game allowed (113.2).

When they last stepped on the court, the Pelicans took a loss by a score of 121-116 against the Spurs. Regarding how they rebounded, New Orleans allowed San Antonio to get 55 in total (16 on the offensive side). They finished 30.8% from distance by connecting on 12 out of 39 and walked away from this one shooting 25 of 31 from the charity stripe (80.6%). The Pelicans allowed the Spurs to convert 42 of their 93 attempts from the field which had them at 45.2% for this contest. When the final whistle blew, the Pelicans finished shooting 43 out of 99 from the field which gave them a percentage of 43.4%. In relation to 3-pointers, New Orleans converted 13 of 38 attempts (34.2%). They were able to convert 17 of the free throw tries for a percentage of 81.0%. The Spurs were called for 18 fouls for the game which took the Pelicans to the charity stripe for 21 shots. They coughed up the ball 8 times, while recording 9 steals for this contest. The Pelicans were able to collect 30 defensive boards and 13 offensive boards for a total of 43 for the contest.

Trey Murphy III was important for the Pelicans in this contest. Murphy tallied 25 points in his 38 minutes on the court and accumulated 5 assists in this game. He made 8 of 16 for this contest for a field goal rate of 50.0%, and had 6 rebounds.

New Orleans has a mark of 5-20 this season. The Pelicans are committing 17.8 fouls per game and they go 75.7% from the charity stripe. Their rate of assisting teammates is at 23.8 times per game (26th in basketball) and they lose possession by turning the ball over 15.0 times per contest. New Orleans has accounted for 2,624 pts for the season (105.0 per contest) and they average 43.0 boards per contest. When it comes to offensive execution, the Pelicans are shooting 43.8% from the field, which ranks 28th in the NBA.

The New Orleans defense concedes 37.0% on 3-point shots (358 of 967) and their opponents are converting on 77.8% of their free throw shots. They have relinquished 28.6 assists and 45.6 rebounds per contest, ranking them 27th and 26th in the league. The Pelicans on the defensive side of the court are 24th in the league in points given up per game with 116.7. They are forcing their opponents into 14.7 turnovers on a nightly basis and have let teams shoot 48.6% from the floor (29th in the league).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Sacramento

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