Odds for Pelicans vs. Magic: Potential trap game for the Pels

The New Orleans Pelicans will take on the Orlando Magic tonight, looking for their 4th win in a row.

The suddenly frisky Pelicans are just two games back of the final play-in spot, a goal I think they will reach even if Zion Williamson doesn’t play this season.

Brandon Ingram has been playing like an MVP, the teams directly in front of them stink and the Pelicans can still make move to upgrade their bench.

The Orlando Magic have the second-worst record in the NBA and are a young team that is tanking their way to another top draft pick, so on paper this is one the Pelicans should win.

That is why it makes me nervous, as the Pelicans have a nasty habit of losing to the bad teams, especially after giving us some hope. This one has trap game written all over it, so I hope coach Willie Green has the team dialed in tonight in Orlando.

New Orleans Pelicans vs. Orlando Magic: Odds, spread, over/under

According to WynnBET, the Pelicans are six point favorites tonight on the road against the Magic.

This is the most the Pels have been favored in a game this season, but any NBA team can get a win on a given night, so if they don’t play focused, they will lose tonight in Orlando.

There aren’t any money lines set for this game just yet, but the Pels are getting +100 to cover the spread, which is a bet I like. They could easily blow out the Magic, and if they are winning late, should pull away by more than six points.

The over/under is set at 209.5 and I like these two teams to go over that, so I would take the Pelicans to win with the points and hammer the over.

As for daily fantasy, Brandon Ingram and Jonas Valanciunas continue to be the bedrocks of the Pelicans for fantasy, as they are consistently filling up stat sheets.

Same with Josh Hart, who is averaging a double-double over his last four games to go with 4.5 assists.

If you are looking for a high risk/high reward play, Nickeil Alexander-Walker is coming off his best game of the season and tends to be very streaky, so if last game was the beginning of a hot streak, he’ll fill it up off the bench again tonight.

How to watch

This game tips off early at 6:00 PM CT and you can watch it on Bally Sports New Orleans or listen on ESPN 100.3 FM.