Pelicans are 5.5-point favorites over the Thunder

NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) - The New Orleans Pelicans will be the favorites when they take the court on Wednesday night in their play-in matchup with the Thunder.

Right now, Caesars Sportsbook has New Orleans as a 5.5-point favorite over Oklahoma City. The Pels were 3-1 against OKC this season. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander missed two of the matchups.

The Pels are the 9-seed and the Thunder are the 10-seed in this play-in game that tips at 8:30 p.m.

The Pelicans lost in their final game of the regular season to the Timberwolves, 113-108. Minnesota’s Rudy Gobert was kicked out of the game at halftime by his own team, after punching a teammate. Jaden McDaniels also missed a significant amount of the game after punching a wall and fracturing his hand.

Even with all the hullabaloo involving the T-Wolves, the Pels still fell short. The New Orleans bench could only muster eight points.

The Pels need to win two play-in games to clinch a spot in the playoffs. If they beat OKC, they’ll play the loser of Timberwolves/Lakers on Friday night.

New Orleans will do it without the services of Zion Williamson. He’s currently nursing a hamstring injury that will keep him out at least through the first round of the playoffs.

The Pels were 39-42-1 against the spread in the 2022-23 season.

For more sports betting talk, checkout the Final Bet at 10:35 p.m. on FOX 8 this Thursday.

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