Portland Trail Blazers at New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday, January 6 is about as close to a coin flip as the ratings get, with the Trail Blazers at only 55%. Small things like rest, health and shooting variance should decide it.
Why it is so close
The Win Meter reads the Trail Blazers 55%, with a projected score of Portland Trail Blazers 114, New Orleans Pelicans 113. The rating gap is 134 points in favor of the Trail Blazers, and home court and rest add about 100 rating points for the Pelicans on top of that.
Readings in this range leave plenty of room for the other side. About 45 times in 100 games like this, the Pelicans would win.
Recent form
The Trail Blazers are 2-0 this season and 2-3 in their last 5 games, with an average margin of -0.6. The Pelicans are 0-2 this season and 1-4 in their last 5 games, with an average margin of -3.4.
The Trail Blazers' best recent win was 124-83 at home against PHX.
The Trail Blazers were beaten 114-93 at home by SAS not long ago.
The Pelicans' best recent win was 156-137 at home against UTA.
The Pelicans were beaten 144-118 on the road by BOS not long ago.
Injuries to watch
Out: Shaedon Sharpe (POR), expected back Mar 2, 2027, Chris Youngblood (POR), expected back Oct 27, 2026, and Branden Carlson (POR), expected back Oct 27, 2026.
Day to day or questionable: Yves Missi (NOP). Their status can change before tip-off.
The season series
In our records of recent meetings, the Trail Blazers lead 6-2, with the Trail Blazers outscoring the Pelicans by an average of 8.4 points per game. The last meeting was NOP 106, POR 118.