New Orleans Pelicans vs Indiana Pacers Prediction, Odds and Picks for Today, 01/16/26

The play of Trey Murphy III has been exceptional over the past couple of weeks or so. His last 8 games have seen him average 28.3 points per game, shooting just under 53% from the field and 41% from three. He was one of the main reasons why the Pels won their last game against the Nets, but at this point you have to wonder if what he is doing is actually being counter productive for New Orleans. It’s quite clear that the play-in tournament isn’t an option for this team, so a high pick in the draft is the way to go. By winning games the Pels are only risking dropping outside the top 3 in the draft lottery.

Indiana is in a similar boat actually, they are sitting in 15th place in the Eastern Conference and although they too have shown signs of life lately, it would be smarter for them to just tank the rest of the year and try to do something next season by drafting well and with a healthy Tyrese Haliburton. We just saw their longest win streak of the season end on Wednesday as the Raptors beat them 115-101, prior to that the Pacers won against Charlotte, Miami and Boston. They achieved that feat by playing extremely well on defense, so the question is can they do it against New Orleans on Friday?

I believe they can. Indiana has won 5 consecutive meetings at home against this team, plus they’ve covered in 4 of their last 5 overall. Trey Murphy III is their only concern, but I believe the likes of Siakam and co. will come up with a solid gameplan for him here. Take Indiana.

New Orleans Pelicans vs Indiana Pacers Predictions: Pacers -3.5 is available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.