New Orleans Pelicans vs Los Angeles Lakers Prediction, 3/4/2025 Preview and Pick
Game: New Orleans Pelicans vs Los Angeles Lakers
Date: Tuesday, March 4, 2025
Location: Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, CA
TV: Spectrum Sportsnet
The New Orleans Pelicans (17-44) are hitting the road to Crypto.com Arena on Tuesday where they will try to beat the Los Angeles Lakers (38-21).

The Pelicans stepped onto the hardwood against the Jazz and walked away with a win by a score of 128-121 in their last contest. When it comes to personal fouls, the Pelicans ended up with 15 while the Jazz totaled 14 personal fouls. They made 16 of their 44 shots from 3-point land. Utah ended up shooting 76.5% at the charity stripe by burying 13 of 17 attempts. Moreover, Utah collected 41 boards (9 offensive, 32 defensive) and added 5 blocks. Utah distributed 35 dimes and had 4 steals for the game. In terms of defending, New Orleans allowed 47.9% from the field on 46 of 96 shooting. They also doled out 35 assists in this contest while forcing 13 turnovers and earning 8 steals. Regarding hauling in rebounds, they collected a total of 48 with 13 of them being of the offensive sort. When they shot from the free throw line, the Pelicans knocked down 7 of 13 attempts for a percentage of 53.8%. New Orleans ended the contest with a 52.0% FG percentage (53 of 102) and converted 15 out of their 44 shots from beyond the arc.
Kelly Olynyk is one guy who was important in the matchup. He was able to score 26 points on 10 out of 14 shooting. He was on the court for 26 minutes played and also totaled 9 rebounds. Olynyk finished the contest at 71.4% from the floor and also distributed 4 dimes.
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New Orleans heads into this game with a mark of 17-44 on the year. They cough up possession 14.2 times per game and as a unit they are committing 18.0 fouls per game. As a team, New Orleans is collecting 43.6 rebounds per game and has totaled 1,554 assists for the campaign, which is 18th in the NBA in terms of passing the ball. The Pelicans are shooting 34.8% on shots from downtown (749 of 2,154) and 76.1% from the charity stripe. They are averaging 111.0 pts per contest (21st in the league) while going 45.0% from the floor.
On the defensive end, the Pelicans have forced 14.6 turnovers per contest and they draw 18.0 fouls. They are 28th in the NBA in giving up assists to their opponents with 1,764 conceded this year. The Pelicans defense is allowing a field goal percentage of 48.1% (2,674 of 5,563) and they relinquish 46.5 rebounds per game as a team. They are giving up 36.7% on shots from beyond the arc while they are 26th in the league in PPG allowed (118.7).
When they last stepped on the court, the Lakers went home victorious with a score of 108-102 when they faced the Clippers. The Lakers were able to pull down 30 defensive boards and 11 offensive boards for a total of 41 in the game. They gave up possession of the ball 17 times, while earning 8 steals in this contest. The Clippers committed 22 personal fouls in the matchup which got the Lakers to the free throw line for 20 attempts. They were able to bury 14 of the free throw attempts for a percentage of 70.0%. In the matter of shooting from beyond the arc, Los Angeles converted 18 of 42 attempts (42.9%). In all, the Lakers finished the game shooting 38 out of 77 from the field which had them shooting 49.4%. The Lakers permitted the Clippers to convert 38 of 88 attempts from the field which left them with a rate of 43.2% for the matchup. They shot 30.8% from beyond the arc by going 12 out of 39 and finished the contest at 14 of 17 at the free throw line (82.4%). With respect to rebounding, Los Angeles allowed Los Angeles to get 40 in all (10 on the offensive glass).
Luka Doncic ended up being important for the Lakers in this matchup. Doncic scored 29 points in his 37 minutes on the hardwood and totaled 9 dimes in this contest. He converted 9 out of 17 in this game giving him a rate of 52.9%, and had 6 rebounds.
Los Angeles has a record of 38-21 so far this year. The Lakers are committing 16.6 personal fouls per contest and they go 78.7% from the free throw line. They are assisting teammates 26.3 times per game (15th in the NBA) and they turn it over 13.9 times per game. Los Angeles has totaled 6,652 pts for the campaign (112.7 per contest) and they pull down 42.5 boards per game. When it comes to executing on offense, the Lakers are shooting 48.1% from the floor, which ranks 6th in the NBA.
The Los Angeles defense surrenders 35.0% on shots from behind the 3-point line (787 of 2,246) and their opposition makes 79.1% of their shots from the free throw line. They surrender 27.2 dimes and 43.0 total boards per game, which is ranked 23rd and 10th in the NBA. The Lakers on the defensive side of the court are 8th in the NBA in PPG surrendered with 111.1. They have forced 14.0 turnovers per game and have let teams shoot 46.0% from the field (10th in the league).
Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?
Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take New Orleans
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Additional Resources:
Los Angeles Lakers - Twitter
New Orleans Pelicans - Twitter