Pelicans Hope to Sweep Spurs and Lakers this Weekend, Boost Play-In Odds

The New Orleans Pelicans host a pair of must-win games against Western Conference foes from San Antonio and Los Angeles.

This weekend is paramount for the New Orleans Pelicans (31-44, No. 9 West) to record wins over the Spurs and the Lakers to solidify their postseason hopes.

The San Antonio Spurs (29-44, No. 11 West) visit the Smoothie King arena at 4 PM CT, hoping to play spoilers in the Pelicans' play-in game hopes. Coach Pop's group of young players would like to close the two-game gap in the Southwest Division between themselves and the Pelicans. 

Should New Orleans defeat San Antonio, they will tie the season series and give themselves a slight tiebreaker edge. Why? With a win, the Pels will sweeten their division record to 7-8, and the Spurs would drop to 4-9. San Antonio's chances of catching New Orleans will be slim and face their division rivals Rockets, Grizzlies, and Mavericks before closing out the season.

Feb 27, 2022; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (6) looks on in the second half against the New Orleans Pelicans at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

On Sunday, King James and the Los Angeles Lakers (31-42, No. 10 West) visit the Big Easy in a primetime showdown with the Pelicans. The contest will start a 7 PM CT in Smoothie King, and the place will be on fire. L.A. is a .5 game behind New Orleans for the play-in tournament. 

It's simple for LeBron and company. They must win to keep pace and split this season's series with CJ McCollum's crew after the Pels won 123-95 on Feb. 27 in Los Angeles.

Mar 18, 2022; San Antonio, Texas, USA; New Orleans Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado (15) brings the ball up in the first half against the San Antonio Spurs at the AT&T Center. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Dunn-USA TODAY Sports

Coach Green's squad must knock off and knock out King James and seize the season tiebreaker scenario over the Lakers. 

A weekend's clean sweep with eight contests remaining on the regular-season slate will boost New Orleans' chances and confidence. The team listed Brandan Ingram as questionable for Saturday's tilt vs. San Antonio. Since his hamstring injury, the Young Guns in Herbert Jones, Jose Alvarado, and Trey Murphy III are making strides in the Pels lineup. Their defensive skills are the key. Surprisingly, the Pelicans rookies rank No. 1 in steals. The New Orleans rookies are fifth in scoring (27.4 PPG) and second in assists 8,4 APG) over the past ten days of game action. The young Pels' continued contributions will be necessary as the Spurs and Lakers seek to keep their playoff hopes alive after this weekend. 

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