For the second time in three days, the New Orleans Pelicans host the Los Angeles Lakers. This time, a playoff berth is on the line.

The pregame narrative: I expect the Lakers to do what they just did on Sunday, which is win. I'm also backing LeBron James and CJ McCollum to put up solid efforts on the prop market.

Check out the full Lakers vs. Pelicans SGP picks for their play-in tournament matchup on April 16.

Lakers vs. Pelicans SGP picks

Parlay: Lakers ML + Over 221.5 points + LeBron over 8.5 assists + McCollum over 29.5 points/rebounds/assists (+550)

Lakers moneyline (-103): Sunday's Lakers/Pelicans game wasn't as meaningful as this one, but it was awfully close. A win for the Pelicans would've kept them out of the play-in tournament.

And yet L.A. came in as the road team and dominated. The Lakers took a 17-point lead into the break and won each of the first three quarters en route to a 124-108 victory.

Los Angeles is now 3-1 against New Orleans, winning the past two matchups by a combined 33 points.

New Orleans is on a five-game home losing skid that includes a loss to the Spurs as an 11.5-point favourite.

Other parlay picks

Over 221.5 points (-159): The Lakers have hit the over at a higher rate than any other team in the NBA (57.3%), and they're also the top overs team on the road.

When playing away from Crypto.com Arena, L.A. has hit the over in 26 of 40 games (65.0%). The average point total in the Lakers' road games is 237.4 points.

This feels like a comfortable number considering the Lakers and Pelicans cleared it in all four regular season matchups.

Also, although the Pelicans have a 55.6% unders rate overall, they've hit the over in exactly half of their home games this season (20-20).

LeBron over 8.5 assists (-148): No, this isn't a first half line.

LeBron put up 13 assists in just two quarters against the Pelicans on Sunday, later finishing with 17 as part of a triple-double. This is a line worth backing him on.

Over his past 24 games, the King is averaging 9.6 assists. He has cleared this number 17 times in that span, including both matchups against the Pelicans.

McCollum over 29.5 PRA (-275): Without this pick, we're looking at a +340 ticket. For those looking to take an even bigger swing, this is a nice add-on.

McCollum has crushed this line lately, clearing it in 12 of his past 13 games. Most of that time came without Brandon Ingram on the court, but Ingram is only one game removed from an extended injury absence.

On Sunday, Ingram took just nine shots and played 23 minutes. I expect those numbers to increase tonight, but not to an extent that costs McCollum here.

McCollum has cleared this line in both home games against the Lakers, averaging 36.0 PRA in those games.

Picks as of 10:15 a.m. on 04/16/2024.