Despite being without CJ McCollum for its past 25 games, Portland (22-16 SU, 19-19 ATS) enters Tuesday’s action sixth in the Western Conference standings. The high-scoring veteran is expected to return to action when the Blazers open a two-game set with the Pelicans (17-22, 17-22), who are coming off back-to-back blowout victories.
- Date/Time: March 16, 10 p.m. ET
- Arena: Moda Center
- TV Coverage: TNT
- Sportsbook Odds: Trail Blazers -1 | O/U 239.5 (Line History)
- Pelicans vs Trail BlazersMatchup Report
Sportsbook Odds Analysis
Early bettors expect McCollum to make an immediate impact, betting the Blazers up to 2-point favorites at some books as of this morning. Portland was a 4-point underdog when the teams met last month in New Orleans, with the Blazers winning 126-124 on February 17.
New Orleans News & Notes
Head coach Stan Van Gundy finally seems to have his team’s attention after ripping them following last week’s embarrassing 30-point home loss to the Timberwolves. New Orleans has won its last two outings by a combined 54 points, including Sunday’s impressive 135-115 rout of the Clippers as 6-point underdogs.
New Orleans shot a season-high 65.4 percent from the field against LA, scoring more than half of its points in the paint and recording 38 assists as a team. Zion Williamson led the way with 27 points on 16 field-goal attempts while six other Pelicans scored in double digits, helping New Orleans go OVER the total for the 14th time in its last 17 games and 28th in 34.
The challenge now for the Pels is to carry that momentum into their first road game in nearly three weeks. New Orleans has lost five of its last six games away from home, where it’s just 5-12 SU and 7-10 ATS this season.
Portland News & Notes
After carrying the Blazers offense for much of the season, Damian Lillard is finally going to get some help. Backcourt partner CJ McCollum is expected to return Tuesday from a foot fracture that caused him to miss Portland’s last 25 games, dating back to January 16. McCollum had started the season on fire, averaging 26.7 points and shooting 44.1 percent from behind the arc in his first 13 games.
Portland can use him as it looks to rebound from Sunday’s 114-112 loss to the league-worst Timberwolves, a game in which the Blazers trailed by as many as 14 points in the fourth quarter.
Lillard had 38 points in the loss to increase his season average to 29.9 per game, the second-highest in the NBA. Gary Trent Jr. was the only other Blazer to score more than 19 points while only two other Portland players cracked double digits.
Betting Pick: Trail Blazers -2
Even if he’s on a minutes restriction, McCollum’s return should energize the Blazers enough to beat a Pelicans team that has lost 13 of its last 15 games as a road underdog.
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Buy Sports Picks Now- The OVER is 14-3 in New Orleans’ last 17 games.
- Portland is 0-4 ATS in its last 4 games.
- New Orleans is 4-1 SU and ATS in its last 5 games vs Portland.
