Orlando Magic vs New Orleans Pelicans Prediction, 3/13/2025 Preview and Pick

Game: Orlando Magic vs New Orleans Pelicans

Date: Thursday, March 13, 2025

Location: Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, LA

TV: Gulf Coast Sports

The New Orleans Pelicans (17-48) will try to beat the Orlando Magic (30-36) at Smoothie King Center on Thursday.

The Magic played the Rockets and walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 97-84 in their last contest. Orlando wrapped up the game having earned a 32.6% FG percentage (28 out of 86) and converted 8 of their 32 three-point shots. When they shot from the free throw line, the Magic buried 20 of 24 attempts for a rate of 83.3%. When it comes to pulling down rebounds, they earned 42 with 13 of them being offensive. They also doled out 15 assists in the game as well as forcing 20 turnovers and earning 10 steals. With regard to defense, Orlando let their opponent shoot 39.3% from the floor on 35 of 89 shooting. Houston totaled 20 dimes and had 4 steals for the matchup. In addition, Houston totaled 63 boards (20 offensive, 43 defensive) and got 5 blocks. Houston shot 61.1% from the free throw line by making 11 of their 18 shots. They also knocked down 16 out of their 43 tries from three-point range. In regard to fouls, the Magic walked away with 19 while the Rockets had 18 fouls.

Paolo Banchero is a player who was a contributor in this contest. Banchero finished 43.5% from the floor and recorded 3 assists. He played 36 mins played and also grabbed 5 rebounds. He left the arena with 25 points on 10 of 23 shooting.

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Orlando will enter this contest with a mark of 30-36 on the campaign. They cough up possession 14.4 times per contest and as a unit they are committing 20.7 personal fouls per game. As a unit, Orlando is pulling down 41.5 rebounds per contest and has accounted for 1,507 dimes for the season, which has them ranked 28th in the league in terms of passing the rock. The Magic are shooting 30.7% from downtown (712 of 2,323) and 76.8% from the free throw line. They currently have an average of 104.3 pts per game (30th in the league) while connecting on 44.0% from the field.

On the defensive end, the Magic are able to force 16.5 turnovers on a nightly basis and they draw 20.8 fouls. They are conceding 37.0% on shots from beyond the perimeter and they are 1st in the NBA in PPG from their opponents (106.1). The Magic defensively are giving up a field goal percentage of 47.1% (2,515 of 5,335) and they concede 42.1 boards per contest as a group. They rank 2nd in the NBA in giving up assists with 1,517 surrendered on the campaign.

The last time they took the hardwood, the Pelicans walked away with a victory by a final of 127-120 when they played the Clippers. With respect to team rebounding, New Orleans allowed Los Angeles to snag 34 overall (11 on the offensive glass). They wrapped up this game 33.3% from beyond the perimeter via 14 of 42 and ended up going 14 out of 18 from the free throw line (77.8%). The Pelicans allowed the Clippers to knock down 46 of 92 tries from the floor which had them sitting at 50.0% in this matchup. When this game wrapped up, the Pelicans shot 47 out of 85 from the floor which had them at 55.3%. Regarding shots from beyond the perimeter, New Orleans made 17 of their 31 attempts (54.8%). They were able to make 16 of the free throw attempts for a percentage of 88.9%. The Clippers committed 16 personal fouls for the game which took the Pelicans to the free throw line for a total of 18 shots. They also gave up possession of the ball 19 times, while getting 7 steals for the contest. The Pelicans were able to corral 34 defensive boards and 12 offensive rebounds totaling 46 for the contest.

CJ McCollum was important for the Pelicans for the matchup. He converted 8 out of 16 in the game for a field goal rate of 50.0%, and had 3 rebounds. McCollum tallied 23 points in his 33 mins on the court and had 7 dimes in the game.

New Orleans has a record of 17-48 for the year. The Pelicans are responsible for committing 18.0 personal fouls every game and they shoot 75.9% from the charity stripe. They are assisting teammates 25.4 times per game (20th in the league) and they turn the ball over 14.1 times per contest. New Orleans has accounted for 7,201 points for the year (110.8 per game) and they collect 43.4 rebounds per contest. On the offensive side of the court, the Pelicans are hitting on 45.0% from the floor, which ranks them 24th in the NBA.

The Pelicans are ranked 26th in the NBA in points allowed per game with 119.1. They are able to force 14.6 turnovers per game and have allowed teams to shoot 48.3% from the floor (29th in the league). The New Orleans defense gives up 36.5% on shots from behind the 3-point line (956 of 2,618) and their opponents are knocking down 78.3% of their free throw shots. They have relinquished 29.0 assists and 46.6 rebounds per game, ranking them 27th and 29th in the league.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Orlando

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