The Pelicans will take on the Trail Blazers for the second time this season. The Trail Blazers beat the Pelicans 126-124 on February 17th in New Orleans when Damian Lillard hit the game-winning three-point play with 16.5 seconds left. The Pelicans come into this game having won two in a row after taking down the Clippers 135-115 on Sunday. The Trail Blazers are coming off a 114-112 loss to the Timberwolves. CJ McCollum will return to the Trailblazers lineup since being out since January 16th. Both offenses rank among the top seven in offensive rating while both defenses rank among the bottom three in defensive rating.

For the Pelicans to win they will need to take advantage of the Blazer's lack of size and dominate in the paint. Steven Adams and Zion Williamson should be able to dominate Enes Kanter in the paint. Kanter is their available center so he cannot afford to get into foul trouble.

The Trail Blazers will need to step it up on the defensive end if they want to come away with a win. Damian Lillard is one of the best scorers n the league and with McCollum back they will have a potent offense. They will need to crash the boards hard and not allow the Pelicans to have second chances. Jusuf Nurkic (wrist) and Zach Collins (ankle), remain out with injuries.

The Pelicans use their advantage in the paint to take this game over and come away with a win.

Play on New Orleans.