Cleveland Cavaliers vs New Orleans Pelicans Prediction 3/21/2026 Today’s NBA Picks

Cleveland Cavaliers invade the Smoothie King Center to take on the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday night.

Cleveland Cavaliers Betting Preview 

The Cleveland Cavaliers have been in decent shape as they’ve won six of their last nine games overall and they will be aiming for a third straight victory after routing the Bulls in a 115-110 road win on Thursday. James Harden led the team with 36 points, seven rebounds and nine assists, Evan Mobley added 26 points with 14 rebounds on 12 of 19 shooting while Jaylon Tyson chipped in with 18 points and 11 rebounds. As a team, the Cavaliers shot 44 percent from the field and 14 of 41 from the 3-point line as they jumped all over the Bulls early on to lead by as many as 29 points and they needed every bit of as they saw their lead get cut to just one point with 3:33 left in the fourth quarter. 

New Orleans Pelicans Betting Preview 

Meanwhile, the New Orleans Pelicans have been on a nice run lately as they’ve won five of their last six games overall and they will be gunning for a fourth straight victory after sneaking past the Clippers in a 105-99 win on Thursday. Trey Murphy III led the team with 27 points on nine of 17 shooting, Saddiq Bey added 20 points with six assists while Zion Williamson chipped in with 15 points on five of seven shooting. As a team, the Pelicans shot 47 percent from the field and 13 of 34 from the 3-point line but this win was more about their defense as this game was closely contested all the way until the Pelicans closed the final 5:34 on a 14-5 run to snatch the game away at the end. 

Cleveland v New Orleans Free Prediction 

The Cavaliers are still missing Craig Porter Jr and Jarrett Allen with Jaylon Tyson and Donovan Mitchell both questionable while the Pelicans have ruled out Bryce McGowens again. These two teams have already met once this season with the Cavaliers winning by 141-118 back on Dec 23, but a lot has changed since then. The Cavaliers are starting to heat up with their revamped backcourt, but the Pelicans have also come to life in recent games and I think they could pull off the upset at home. I expect this to be a close one, so I will lean with the Pelicans and the points in this spot.

Peter Tran's Pick: New Orleans +5.5