Pelicans vs. Hornets Prediction, Odds & Best Bet for March 23 (Pelicans' Playoff Fight Continues)

Pelicans vs. Hornets Game Info

• Date: Thursday, March 23, 2023
• Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
• Venue: Smoothie King Center -- New Orleans, Louisiana
• Coverage: BSNO and BSSE

This is simply not the Hornets' season. They have been without their best player LaMelo Ball for nearly the entire season and come into this game with the second-worst record in the Eastern Conference (23-50). The Pelicans, on the other hand, are still in the hunt for a playoff spot in the Western Conference, so every game is crucial for them at this point.

Pelicans vs. Hornets Odds & Spread

All NBA betting lines, odds and prop bets are from FanDuel Sportsbook.

Pelicans vs Hornets Betting Information

Favorite	Spread	Favorite Spread Odds	Underdog Spread Odds	Total	Over Total Odds	Under Total Odds	Favorite Moneyline	Underdog Moneyline
Pelicans	-8	-	-	225.5	-110	-110	-330	265

The Pelicans are the heavy favorite in this game in New Orleans and the total for this matchup is the second lowest of Thursday's slate at 225.5 points.

Pelicans vs. Hornets Betting Trends

• The Pelicans have gone 32-37-1 against the spread this season.
• So far this year, the Hornets have been installed as underdogs by an 8-point margin or more 23 times and are 11-10-2 ATS in those matchups.
• This season, Pelicans games have hit the over 33 times.
• Hornets games this season have gone over the total in 31 of 70 opportunities (44.3%).
• New Orleans has covered the spread in a higher percentage of its home games than away games. It has covered 19 times in 35 opportunities at home, and it has covered 13 times in 35 opportunities in road games.
• This season, Charlotte is 13-21-0 at home against the spread (.382 winning percentage). Away, it is 17-15-4 ATS (.472).

Pelicans vs. Hornets Prediction & Pick

The Pelicans are fighting for the playoffs and the Hornets are fighting for the No. 1 pick, so they have very different objectives at this stage of the season. Charlotte owns the fourth-worst road record in the NBA (11-26) while New Orleans has been really solid at home, going 23-13.

These two teams played at the beginning of the season as well, where the Pelicans came away with a convincing 12-point win. Tonight shouldn't be much different. New Orleans needs to make up ground in the standings and Charlotte doesn't have the talent or the will to keep pace, especially on the road.

Prediction: Pelicans 120 | Hornets 110

Pelicans vs. Hornets Best Bet

CJ McCollum is averaging exactly 21.0 points per game this season, but his scoring has been lacking of late. With an over/under sitting at 21.5 points, McCollum has gone under that number in three of his last four games, not even topping 15 points in any of those three contests. McCollum scored 21 points the last time he faced the Hornets, which would've hit the under as well.

Bet: CJ McCollum Under 21.5 Points (-120)

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David Kaestle is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, David also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username davekaestle. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.