Ladies and Gentlemen… It’s time!! After a great regular season it is now NBA playoff time, and nowadays that means the play in games. In the West we have the 7th seed Pelicans hosting the 8th seed Lakers in what should be an electric showdown. Let’s get into it.

The Pelicans come into this one at dead even odds to walk away with a win which I find interesting. They have higher offensive and defensive ratings coming in at 11th and 6th respectively making this a very well rounded team. They score fewer points per game, but do it more efficiently than their opponents. Zion Williamson has been great this season in what should be a comfort to Pels fans who were worried he would be a bust. Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum have also been averaging over 20 points a game, and other pieces like Trey Murphy, Valanciunas, and Alvarado have propelled this team into a spot where they could really make a run.

Now the problem is they are going against the greatest basketball player of this generation. LeBron is absolutely an X factor and can take over any game he is in. This team averages more points and with a greater pace, things that are very important come playoff time. The Lakers are more hot recently, it almost seems like their playoffs have already started. AD has been fantastic this season averaging a hair under 25 a game, and the guard tandem of Russell and Reaves are great. Sure this team is on the older side, but it hasn’t slowed them too much and they look good heading into the play-in game. I could really see this one going either way… Who do you have?

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