Warriors vs. Pelicans Game 5: Prediction, Betting Odds For Potential Golden State Clincher

After a brief scare in Game 3, the Golden State Warriors are one victory away from cruising past the New Orleans Pelicans in the second round of the 2018 NBA playoffs. They’re expected to win Game 5 Tuesday night and move on to a long-awaited meeting with the Houston Rockets in the Western Conference Finals.

Golden State is an 11.5-point home favorite, according to OddsShark, and the over/under is 228.5. It’s a large betting line, but one that makes sense when looking at the way the series has gone.

Other than a poor performance in their first road game of the series, the Warriors have been dominant on offense. Golden State scored at least 118 points in Games 1,2 and 4, outscoring New Orleans by an average of 17.7 points per game.

Stephen Curry made a tremendous impact in two victories after returning from a knee injury. He totaled 51 points on 32 shots in Game 2 and Game 4. The Warriors outscored the Pelicans by 47 points in the 59 minutes he was on the court.

When the Warriors were in danger of seeing their series lead disappear in Game 4, Kevin Durant stepped up and scored 38 points on 27 field-goal attempts. The addition of Durant made Golden State unbeatable last year, and the result might ultimately be the same again this postseason.

Golden State’s offense appears to be running on all cylinders at the moment. They had their one hiccup in Game 3 and could be in for another big night Tuesday.

New Orleans has needed Anthony Davis to perform like the best player in the series to give them a chance. He had a series-high 33 points in the Game 3 win and has solid numbers with averages of 26.3 points and 13.8 rebounds per game, but he hasn’t been the all-world player that the Pelicans saw in the first round.

Davis scored 33 points per game on 57.6 percent shooting in their sweep of the Portland Trail Blazers. With just three more points than shots per game this series, the big man has been relatively held in check. That simply isn’t going to get the job done against the defending champions and one of the greatest rosters ever assembled.

Jrue Holiday has reverted back to being the solid point guard he was in the regular season, instead of playing like the All-Star he resembled in the first round.

Performances like Game 3—when New Orleans beat Golden State 119-100—are few and far between for the Warriors, especially at Oracle Arena. With Curry, Durant, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green, the Warriors have too many weapons to expect this series to head back to New Orleans.

Prediction: Golden State over New Orleans, 127-108