The No. 8 Los Angeles Lakers (47-35) will take on the No. 7 New Orleans Pelicans (49-33) in the first game of the NBA Play-In Tournament this Tuesday, April 16, at 7:40 p.m. ET. The winner will advance to take on the No. 2 Denver Nuggets in the first round of the NBA Playoffs.
The Lakers won three out of four games against the Pelicans during the regular season, with the Pelicans’ lone win coming at home on Dec. 31. New Orleans had a much better record on the road (28-14) than at home (21-19), while Los Angeles went 19-21 in away games.
Regardless of the outcome, there’s money to be made by betting on prop bets. Here are our best Lakers vs Pelicans props for the NBA Play-In Tournament.
Lakers vs Pelicans Odds
Use our NBA odds to locate the best ways to bet on Lakers vs Pelicans:
Lakers vs Pelicans Player Props
LeBron James: Over 35.5 Points + Assists (-120) @ Pelicans
FanDuel Sportsbook • WAGER: 1 Unit
Out of all the players involved in this matchup, none should be happier than LeBron James, who dominated in each meeting during the regular season.
The 39-year-old averaged 28.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 11.8 assists in four games against the Pelicans, concluding with a 28-point triple-double on April 14. This was an essentially good spot for James as a playmaker — he notched at least eight assists in each matchup.
With that in mind, I like the Over at 35.5 combined points and assists at (-120). This is a winner-take-all setting, and we know how James performs when the stakes are highest. Plus, he surpassed this line in three out of four meetings with New Orleans this year and finished with 35 in his lone miss.
Win or lose, James should stuff the stat sheet. Lock in the Over with your NBA bet of the day.
Herbert Jones: Over 1.5 Threes (-111) vs Lakers
FanDuel Sportsbook • WAGER: 1 Unit
One exploitable weakness of this Lakers team is their lackluster three-point defense. Los Angeles allowed the third-most three-point attempts (37.9) and makes (14.3) per game and let opponents cash in at a 37.6% rate, which was sixth-highest in the NBA.
With that said, I wouldn’t recommend blindly betting Pelicans Overs. Instead, I’m focusing on Herb Jones, who has an attainable 1.5 mark to hit.
Although he’s mostly known for his defense, Jones quietly connected on 41.8% of his three-point attempts this season while increasing his volume from 2.5 per game to 3.6. In four games against the Lakers, Jones went 10-of-20 overall and made three-plus in three.
He only made two or more three-pointers in 32 out of 76 appearances, but his success against Los Angeles doesn’t seem to be a fluke.
Lakers vs Pelicans Prop Bets
Lakers: Over 112.5 Points (-115) @ Pelicans
FanDuel Sportsbook • WAGER: 1 Unit
The Lakers play at one of the league’s fastest paces, so it’s not uncommon for them to score into the 120s, let alone the 110s. During the regular season, they averaged 126.3 points per game across four meetings with New Orleans.
Los Angeles scored 133, 109, 139, and 124 points in those games, respectively. It seems this is a bad matchup for the Pelicans, whose seventh-ranked defense has generally been one of the NBA’s best throughout the year.
- Check out our Warriors vs Kings props for more NBA Play-In bets.
Part of what makes the Lakers such a difficult cover is their collective size. Three of their starters (James, Anthony Davis, Rui Hachimura) stand 6-foot-8 or taller, which helps them to stay competitive against the likes of Brandon Ingram, Zion Williamson, and Jonas Valančiūnas.
As long as Los Angeles plays at its usual pace, it should be able to surpass this 112.5-point total.
Pelicans: 1Q +0.5 (-115) vs Lakers
FanDuel Sportsbook • WAGER: 1 Unit
Despite their 1-3 record against the Lakers, the Pelicans were actually quite dominant in the first quarter of each matchup, going 3-1 overall. That’s not especially surprising, either.
New Orleans ranks third in average first quarter scoring margin (+2.6), with only Denver (+3.6) and Boston (+4.4) posting better margins during the regular season. Los Angeles, on the other hand, ranks No. 21 (-0.8).
Despite that — and the fact that the Lakers are on the road — the Pelicans are listed as the slightest of underdogs for the opening frame of Tuesday’s showdown.
It’s impossible to ignore the value here. Back New Orleans against this first-quarter spread.
