San Antonio Spurs @ New Orleans Pelicans - February 23, 2025

Ah, the thrill of the NBA season! It’s that time again where we dive into another matchup filled with potential drama and excitement. This Sunday, we find ourselves at the Smoothie King Center as the San Antonio Spurs face off against the New Orleans Pelicans. Oddsmakers have opened this contest with the Spurs favored by 1.5 points—a tight line that reflects just how unpredictable these teams have been lately.

Let’s take a closer look at what to expect from both sides. The Spurs come into this game with a record of 24-30 straight-up and 25-29 against the spread. While they’ve struggled in recent outings—losing six of their last eight games against the spread—they still manage to score an impressive 113.1 points per game on around 46% shooting. Their ability to dish out nearly 29 assists per game shows they’re capable of moving the ball well when things are clicking.

On the flip side, we have the Pelicans, who are really feeling the heat with a dismal record of 13-43 SU and only managing to cover about 33% of their spreads this season (22-33-1 ATS). They recently suffered a loss against Dallas, failing to keep it competitive despite being underdogs by six points. Offensively, they average just over 110 points per game but seem stagnant, especially considering their three-point shooting percentage hovers around 35%.

Now let’s address defense because that’s where our predictions start getting juicy. San Antonio has shown some grit on defense, grabbing about 45 total rebounds per game while limiting fouls compared to New Orleans’ more careless approach—committing over 18 fouls per contest. The Pelicans’ rebounding is decent too but not enough to counteract their high turnover rate; they give up more than 14 turnovers each night, which can be disastrous against a team like San Antonio looking for fast-break opportunities.

When it comes down to making predictions for this game: I see San Antonio taking home a win here—feeling confident enough that they’ll cover that slim spread as well. Given their scoring capabilities and ball movement alongside New Orleans’ offensive struggles and defensive lapses, it feels like a recipe for success for the Spurs.

And let’s talk totals—this one is set at an interesting mark of around 240 points. With both teams capable of being high-scoring when things go right—and given how many times San Antonio has gone OVER in recent games—I expect this one will cross that threshold comfortably.

So my final call? The Spurs take it home tonight, covering that spread while we can anticipate fireworks on offense leading us above that total line! You know me—I’ll be sticking with my lucky betting rituals before placing my wager! Here’s hoping for an exhilarating matchup and maybe even another legendary win in my books!