Brooklyn Nets vs New Orleans Pelicans 12/17/19 NBA Odds, Preview, and Prediction

The Brooklyn Nets travel to the Big Easy to take on the New Orleans Pelicans at the Smoothie King Center on Tuesday night.

The Nets had a slow start to the season but they have slowly climbed their way back and now are two games above the .500 mark at 14-12 SU on the season. The Nets have won four out of their last six games played and are coming off a 21-point win over the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday night. The Pelicans have struggled without top draft pick Zion Williamson and they have fallen to the bottom of the league. The Pelicans are 15 games below the .500 mark and they head home to face the Nets with a 12-game losing streak in tow.

Dinwiddie Taking Over

The Brooklyn Nets were in all sorts of trouble last month. The team was off to a poor start and then Kyrie Irving was sent to the injured list with a nagging leg injury. However, the Nets have fought back with veteran guard Spencer Dinwiddie taking over and leading the charge. The Nets have won four out of their last six games and are now two games over .500.

Dinwiddie leads the team with 21.0 points and 6.2 assists per game. Jarrett Allen is having a double-double season with 12.3 points and 10.4 rebounds per contest while Joe Harris is putting up 14.5 points per game while shooting 42.9% from behind the three-point arc. Taurean Prince and Garrett Temple are also contributing double-digit scoring this season.

The Nets rank 13th in the NBA in scoring at 111.9 points per game this season. They are 3rd off the glass with an average of 48.0 rebounds per game and they are 15th in passing at 24.2 assists per outing. Brooklyn is in the bottom half of the league in scoring defense at 111.9 points allowed per game.

Pelicans Lose 12th Consecutive Game

The New Orleans Pelicans lost to the Orlando Magic 119-130 on Sunday night for their 12th consecutive loss, worst in the history of the franchise. The defense has been the main issue for New Orleans. The Pelicans have allowed at least 110 points nine times during this period, including six games where they yielded at least 120 points.

Brandon Ingram leads the Pelicans at 25.0 points and 7.0 rebounds per game this season. Jrue Holiday leads the team in assists at 6.8 dimes per contest while also scoring 19.4 points per game. J.J. Redick is shooting 45.7% from three-ball and is scoring 16.2 points per game for the Pelicans. Lonzo Ball is averaging 10.1 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 5.5 assists this season.

The Pelicans are 9th in the league in scoring at 112.8 points per game this season. They are ranked 20th in rebounding at 44.1 boards grabbed per contest and they are 9th in passing at 25.0 dimes per outing. New Orleans has the second-worst defense in the NBA this season at 120.1 points per game allowed.

Who Wins?

Brooklyn is 9-4 SU in their last 13 games played. The Nets are 5-2 SU in their last seven games played on the road. New Orleans is 0-10 SU in their last 10 games played. The Pelicans are 2-11 SU in 13 road games played this season, and 0-5 SU in their last five games against the Eastern Conference. Head to head, the Pelicans are 7-3 SU in their last 10 games played against the Nets.

The Nets continue to play without Kyrie Irving and Caris LeVert but despite missing two key players, the team has found ways to win behind Spencer Dinwiddie. The Nets have won five out of their last eight games and they have moved to two games over the .500 mark at 14-12 on the season.

New Orleans was looking to make a leap this season with their young core. However, Zion Williamson has yet to play his first regular-season game and the team has been very inconsistent so far this season. The Pelicans have lost a dozen straight games and their defense has been terrible.

The Nets will still be without Irving and LeVert but the offense has looked fine with Dinwiddie getting a bigger role. The Pelicans defense has been awful this season and they have given up more than 120 points in half of their last dozen losses. I expect the Nets to score enough points against the New Orleans to pull off this road win.

Prediction: Brooklyn Nets

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Other Bets to Make

The Nets are 6-2 ATS in their last eight games played. Brooklyn is 6-7 ATS in 13 road games played on the road, 6-2 ATS in their last eight games against the Western Conference. The Pelicans are 1-8 ATS in their last nine games played. New Orleans is 0-5 ATS in their last five games played at home, 1-7 ATS in their last eight December games. Head to head, the Nets are 4-2 ATS in their last six games played against the Pelicans.

The Pelicans have dropped 10 straight and they have been awful on both ends of the floor as of late. Brandon Ingram is having a great season but outside him, nothing has been great for the Pelicans. The Nets have found success with Spencer Dinwiddie leading the team in the absence of Kyrie Irving and Caris LeVert. I’ll take the chalk here and go with the Nets against the second-worst defensive team in the league.

Prediction: Nets -2

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The total has gone under in four out of the last five games played by the Nets. The under is 7-6 in Brooklyn’s last 13 games played on the road but the over is 14-3 in their last 17 games played against the Southwest Division. The total has gone over in four out of the last six games played by the Pelicans. The over is 4-1 in their last five games played against the Atlantic Division. Head to head, the over is 6-0 in the last six games played between these two teams. The over is also 12-0 in the last dozen games between these two teams in New Orleans.

The Pelicans have allowed at least 127 points in four out of their last six games played and they have the second-worst scoring defense in the league while ranking 9th in scoring. The Nets are in the top half of the league in scoring and are in the bottom half in scoring defense. Brandon Ingram is having a breakout year in New Orleans and he should have another big game here with no one on the Brooklyn side to control him. I expect a back and forth high scoring game here.

Prediction: Over 230.5

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