New Orleans Pelicans vs Indiana Pacers Odds, Player Props & Picks (Feb. 28)

• Coming off a disappointing loss at home to Toronto, the Indiana Pacers host the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday night
• Only two teams have more wins on the road than the Pelicans (18-12)
• See the New Orleans Pelicans vs Indiana Pacers odds, player props, and picks on Feb. 28, 2024

Road warriors all season long, the New Orleans Pelicans (35-24, 18-12 away, 32-26-1 ATS) finish off a mini two-game trip in Indianapolis tonight, visiting the Indiana Pacers (33-26, 19-12 home, 31-26-3 ATS) at Gainbridge Fieldhouse at 7:40 pm ET.

This is the first of two meetings between the teams this year, who are scheduled to meet in Nola on Friday, and the Pacers are significant home favorites.

New Orleans Pelicans vs Indiana Pacers Odds

Wednesday’s NBA odds favor Indiana by 5.5 points with the Pacers sitting at -228 on the moneyline (a 69.51% implied win probability). The Pels come back at +185 to win straight-up (a 35.09% implied win probability).

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Odds as of Feb. 28 at BetMGM. See the latest on the BetMGM app in North Carolina, which is scheduled to launch March 11. 

Neither team is in a comfortable position in the NBA playoff bracket. Indiana fell to eighth after Monday’s loss to Toronto, but the #5 through #8 seeds in the East are all within half a game of each other. The Pelicans are currently the #5 seed in the West, but they are just 1.5 games clear of #8 Dallas with Phoenix and Sacramento in between.

Pacers Can’t Complete Comeback Against Raptors

Indiana had a three-game win streak snapped last time out, falling 130-122 to Toronto as 5.5-point home favorites. The Pacers, who trailed by double-digits early in the second half, took a 101-100 lead in the fourth quarter but then allowed the Raptors to go on a 10-1 run that put Toronto ahead for good.

Bennedict Mathurin had a game-high 34 points on 11-of-15 shooting along with nine rebounds and five assists, but an off night from All-Star point guard Tyrese Haliburton (nine points on 2-of-11 shooting with seven assists and zero rebounds) coupled with more dismal defense (Toronto had 78 points in the paint) sealed Indiana’s fate.

Indiana still sits first in the NBA in points per game (123.9 PPG) and second in Offensive Rating (120.6), but its horrendous defense is counteracting almost all of the good things the team does on offense. Only two teams are allowing more points per game than the Pacers’ 122.1 (Washington and Atlanta). While some of that is attributable to their frenetic pace (second in the NBA), they sit 26th in D-Rating (118.9).

Pelicans Dominate Knicks for Ninth Win in 12 Games

Missing CJ McCollum (ankle), the Pelicans routed an even-more-injury-plagued Knicks group last time out (112-95). New York was without All-Star Jalen Brunson, Julius Randle, OG Anunoby, and Isaiah Hartenstein.

Taking McCollum’s spot in the starting lineup, Trey Murphy III had one of his best games of the season, dropping a team-high 26 points on 9-14 shooting (including 6-of-11 from three) with seven rebounds and four assists. Leading scorer Zion Williamson (22.4 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 5.1 APG) had 22 points, five rebounds, and four assists, and while Brandon Ingram (21.5 PPG, 5.8 APG) added 24 points, six boards, and five dimes.

The victory was much-needed for New Orleans, which dropped back-to-back home games to Miami (106-95) and Chicago (114-106) prio, both as sizable home favorites. But on the whole, the Pelicans are still trending up, winning nine of their past 12 games to move into the top-five in the West.

New Orleans currently sits fifth in the entire NBA in Net Rating (+4.6) thanks to a 112.2 D-Rating (sixth) and 116.9 O-Rating (14th).

The injury to McCollum, which will keep him out of tonight’s game, as well, is a big concern. While New Orleans is nine games over .500 for the season, they are just 6-9 without McCollum and 29-15 with him in their NBA lineup.

NOLA vs IND Player Props

NBA player props from DraftKings on Feb. 28. 

Zion has the highest point total in the Pelicans/Pacers props at 23.5, following closely by teammate Ingram and Indiana’s Siakam (both at 21.5). Pacers bigman Myles Turner has the highest rebound total at just 7.5.

Pelicans vs Pacers Prediction

New Orleans has been a much different team with/without McCollum, but their 6-9 record without him is a little misleading. The Pelicans went 0-4 in their first four games without McCollum in early November. They are actually a game over .500 since then, including winning two of the last three.

No one is suggesting New Orleans is a better team without McCollum but head coach Willie Green has made the necessary adjustments.  He has more than enough talent left at his disposal to stay competitive against one of the league’s worst defenses.

NOLA vs IND pick: Pelicans +5.5 (-110)

Sascha Paruk’s 2023-24 NBA betting record:

• 17-21 moneyline (+4.06 units)
• 14-12-2 ATS (+1.86 units)
• 7-12 player props (-6.82 units)
• 0-3 same-game parlay (-3.00 units)

All wagers one unit unless expressly stated otherwise