The New Orleans Pelicans will take on the Philadelphia 76ers at 8 p.m. ET on Wednesday at the Smoothie King Center. The headlines leading up to the game have predominantly been about who won’t be playing, as Zion Williamson will miss time with a right foot injury and Ben Simmons was recently suspended for going through the motions at practice after the 76ers failed to trade him this offseason. NBA fans should still see an interesting frontcourt battle with between Joel Embiid and Tobias Harris of the 76ers and Jonas Valanciunas and Brandon Ingram of the Pelicans.
The Sixers have won seven of the last 10 head-to-head matchups against New Orleans, but the Pelicans are 6-3-1 against the spread during that span. This time around, Philadelphia is favored by 3.5-points in the latest Pelicans vs. 76ers odds from Caesars Sportsbook, and the over-under is set at 224.5. Before entering any 76ers vs. Pelicans picks, you’ll want to see the NBA predictions from the proven computer model at SportsLine.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every NBA game 10,000 times and has returned almost $9,000 in profit on its top-rated NBA picks over the past two-plus seasons. The model is up almost $600 on its top-rated picks this season and entered the final week of the 2021 NBA Finals on a stunning 100-66 roll on top-rated NBA picks against the spread dating back to last season. Anyone following it has seen huge returns.
Now, the model has set its sights on Pelicans vs. 76ers. You can head to SportsLine to see its picks. Here are several NBA betting lines for Pelicans vs. 76ers:
- Pelicans vs. 76ers spread: Pelicans +3.5
- Pelicans vs. 76ers over-under: 224.5 points
Featured Game | New Orleans Pelicans vs. Philadelphia 76ers
What you need to know about the 76ers
Philadelphia is coming off of a 49-23 season with hopes of advancing further than the second round of the playoffs, where the Sixers were eliminated by the Atlanta Hawks 103-96 in Game 7. Simmons took just four shots and had only five points in that loss and both Doc Rivers and Embiid shared some criticism of the former No. 1 overall pick after the game, leading Simmons to request a trade this offseason. However, Philadelphia didn’t find an offer to its liking and forced him to report to camp before suspending him for his attitude in practice.
However, the organization still feels like it can contend in the Eastern Conference going forward with Embiid, who averaged 28.5 points and 10.6 rebounds while setting new career-highs for field-goal percentage (51.3), 3-point percentage (37.7) and free-throw percentage (85.9). Philadelphia earned a 109-107 win in their most recent contest against New Orleans in May and Embiid had 37 points and 13 rebounds in that victory.
What you need to know about the Pelicans
On the other hand, the Pelicans missed the playoffs altogether last season and are looking forward to a clean start but they’ll be challenged to do so without Williamson, who shot 61.1 percent from the floor while averaging 27.0 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists last season.
Ingram will have to carry a large scoring load without Williamson in the lineup, but he’s proven himself offensively the last two seasons. He’s averaged 23.8 points per game in each of the last two years and after missing that late-season loss to Philadelphia last season, he could be the difference-maker for New Orleans at home.
How to make Pelicans vs. 76ers picks
The model has simulated Pelicans vs. 76ers 10,000 times and the results are in. We can tell you that the model is leaning under, and it’s also generated a point-spread pick that is hitting in nearly 70 percent of simulations. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.
So who wins Pelicans vs. 76ers? And which side of the spread hits in nearly 70 percent of simulations? Visit SportsLine now to find out which side of the Sixers vs. Pelicans spread you need to jump on Wednesday, all from the model that has crushed its NBA picks, and find out.
