The Golden State Warriors are in a tight race for the eighth seed, which will guarantee them two chances at making the playoffs. They’ll be looking to get an important win against the New Orleans Pelicans.
A Warriors victory sets up a final game showdown with the Grizzlies for the eighth seed – provided that Memphis beats Sacramento on the same day.
Catch this game live on Saturday, May 15, at 9:30 AM, Manila time
HOME TEAM: Golden State Warriors (37-33, 23-11 at home)
Projected Starting Five:
- PG: Steph Curry
- SG: Kent Bazemore
- SF: Andrew Wiggins
- PF: Draymond Green
- C: Kevon Looney
Steph Curry, Andrew Wiggins and Draymond Green are listed as “day-to-day” at the moment, but it’s hard to imagine that all three of them will miss this pivotal game. They’re in an advantageous position with the tiebreaker against Memphis, but the Grizzlies start playing only a half hour before the Warriors do.
With their season-ender being a game against the Grizzlies, the Warriors will want to beat the Pelicans in the off chance that the Grizzlies lose to the Kings.
The Warriors are 7-3 in their last ten games, and Curry has been on a tear with 34.9 PPG, 4.8 RPG and 5.0 APG. Wiggins has also provided him with a lot of backup with 21.5 PPG, 4.8 RPG and 3.1 APG. Curry is also still in a race with Bradley Beal for the scoring title this year, and you can imagine that Curry wants that feather on his cap.
The Warriors are 3-2 ATS in their last five games as a home favorite. Their over-under record in those games is 3-2.
ROAD TEAM: New Orleans Pelicans (31-39, 13-22 on the road)
Projected Starting Five:
- PG: Eric Bledsoe
- SG: Nickeil Alexander-Walker
- SF: Naji Marshall
- PF: James Johnson
- C: Willy Hernangomez
The Pelicans are out of the play-in race, and their injury list is pretty thick. Zion Williamson and Lonzo Ball will not be playing against the Warriors, while Steven Adams, Brandon Ingram, and Wes Iwundu are questionable. Josh Hart also remains out.
New Orleans have gone 5-5 in their last ten games, and out of the potential starting five for tomorrow, their scoring leader in that span is Eric Bledsoe, who’s averaging 15.1 PPG, 3.9 RPG and 4.5 APG. It doesn’t look like they’ll have enough firepower to contend with the Warriors, but stranger things have happened.
Surprisingly, though, the Pelicans are 4-1 ATS in their last five games as a road underdog. All five of those games were playoff bound: Dallas, Memphis, Charlotte, Philadelphia, and Denver. They’ve also hit the under 4 out of 5 times in that span.
PREDICTIONS:
Spread:
I think the Warriors win, but the Pelicans cover the +7 spread.
Over/Under:
The Warriors are averaging 116.8 PPG in their last ten games, and the Pelicans are averaging 113.3 PPG. I would say that the over 230 hits.
