NBA: New Orleans Pelicans VS Oklahoma City Thunder Pick and Predictions 02/13/2023

Game: 8:10 PM ET,  Monday, February 13th, 2023

Venue:  Paycom Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

TV:  NBA League Pass

Pelicans: 29-28, 7th place Western Conference

Thunder: 27-28, 10th place Western Conference

BetMGM:  Point Spread: Thunder -2.5, O/U 235.5

PointsBet: Point Spread: Thunder -2.5, O/U 236

Fanduel: Point Spread: Thunder -2.5, O/U 235.5

Pelicans: PG CJ McCollum, SG Brandon Ingram, SF Trey Murphy III, PF Herbert Jones, C Jonas Valanciunas

Thunder: PG Shai Gilgeous Alexander, SG Josh Giddey, SF Luguentz Dort, PF Jalen Williams, C Jeremiah Robinson-Earl

A Western Conference matchup between a sinking ship and a rising from the bottom boat.  The NBA is very tough.  You need a stars.. Both these teams have some.  You need timing.. Neither of these teams have that.  You need health… UUUUGGGGHHHHH!   The New Orleans Pelicans have built a very nice, very deep roster around the promise that PF Zion Williamson  the former #1 pick of the entire NBA draft will someday play for them.  He has for brief stints almost every season and the world got to see a GREAT basketball player… a wildly efficient scorer, rebounder, and assist maker!  However, with the announcement that Zion has “re aggravated” his hamstring?... It is finally time to recognize that Zion is Greg Oden.  Zion is the dream that will never play.  Maybe he does play?... AFTER the team has dropped from playoff contention… Maybe he plays all of next season? (as if) the Pelicans will have no idea what to do with their roster… They need a real starting Power Forward but already pay one who never plays a MAX extension?!!  The Oklahoma City Thunder have the best young backcourt in basketball and outside of Indian no one else is close.  They also have a handful of exciting young players dotting every position on the roster…. They also are waiting on health to kick in. In the last draft they got C Chet Holmgren.. All 7’3 and skilled… wonderful college player who could be very big for them in the NBA… but he has not played a game because of a broken foot.  Will he ever?  I hope, you hope, they hope.  When he does play he will still be painfully skinny to look at.  What is the great betting opportunity?  That will be found in looking entirely at PG Shai Gilgeous Alexander of the Thunder.  He recentl;y ascended to top-ten player in the league… if you don’t believe check out his averages.. Oh and watch him singlehandedly win the Laker game that LeBron set the all-time scoring mark in.

The New Orleans Pelicans have won only 3 of their last 10… and sadly only 6 of their last 20… if they weren’t off to such a fast start this year, before everyone got hurt,  they would be at the bottom of the league.  Bugt they were so here we are.  They lost their last game to the Cleveland Cavaliers 118-107 in a loss ATS.  They got 25 points & 8 assists from SG Brandon Ingram who should be playing small forward.  They got a terrible game from PG CJ McCollum (4 of 14 shooting) who should be playing SG… PF Trey Murphy III (who is actually a SF) added 17 points.  It was a tough night in New Orleans.

The OKC Thunder have won 5 of their last 10 games.  They went 5-4-1 ATS during that stretch.  They won their last game over the Portland Trail Blazers 138-129 for a big win ATS (as predicted here).  In the win they got 44 points from Shai Gilgeous Alexander (as predicted within 1 point here).  Shai is the real deal.  He is the New Kobe “type” player who will provide constant hustle and scoring and will dominate little guards and finesse big guards for the next decade of Hall Of Fame basketball (Have I told you he is awesome?).  They also got 19 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 assists from his backcourt “mate” SG Josh Giddey (who is actually a big PG).. SF/SG Lue Dort recently returned from injury and came off the bench for 18 points in 20 minutes with a spectacular 6 of 6 from the field. The Thunder are on their way up… They will just need some aging and some big men to make it happen… Oh and they have a big man on the shelf this season.

AAA Sports is 21-10 in NBA picks the last 30 days for a profit of $10,000!! You should be following a handicapper all season long! Get AAA Sports’ picks right now at the Shop Picks page, where you can find all of the Best Bets from our champion sports handicappers. BigAl.com can help you with all your bets from NCAAF, NFL, MLB, NHL… get positive value from all your bets! Remember: winning a bet is way more fun than making a bet!

Our prediction for Monday, February 13th is…. Thunder 130 - Pelicans 115

Bet on the Thunder.  Pelicans guard CJ McCollum has a hurt thumb… and Shai will dominate hin and anyone else they throw at him all game long!  Bet on the Pelicans.

Don't miss our champion handicappers' Free NBA Picks and Premium Selections every day here at Bigal.com. Just click on Shop Picks for our Pelicans/Thunder preview, be sure to bookmark Bigal.com for our daily Game Previews and Predictions.  Get help with all your college football picks, National Football league, NCAA brackets, or any prop bets on your season schedule. 

The Pelicans are 2-8 ATS versus Northwest division opponents.

The Thunder are 10-2 while revenging a close loss of 3 points or less the last 3 seasons.

Pelicans:  SF Trey Murphy III.  Trey is in an odd spot.  He is young and perfectly capable of being a starter in the NBA… but the moment Zion is healthy enough to play he will recede deep into the bench as Ingram and Zion will occupy the starting forward spots. Teams like Indiana and Portland should be high on watching Trey.  He is definitely a trade target for any rebuilding team that needs a forward… He also is definitely a tempting poison pill contract target should he ever hit RFA.

Thunder: SG Josh Giddey.  Josh is really the point guard and Shai is really the Shooting guard.. But since they both do both at a high level… it doesn’t matter what we call them.  Josh is worthy of lifting his side of the best young backcourt in the league even if he isn't;’t the best player of the duo.  His maturation will be made much easier as long as Shai is his running mate.

Pelicans: Willie “Please get me a doctor!” Green

Thunder: Mark “Who am I? “ Daigenault