New Orleans Pelicans vs Boston Celtics Picks and Predictions January 31st 2025

Celtics’ Kristaps Porzingis Stays Hot as Boston Faces Pelicans

The Boston Celtics are looking to build on a dominant win as they head to New Orleans on Friday night to take on the Pelicans. While the Celtics have been inconsistent recently, veteran center Kristaps Porzingis has been in peak form, and Boston hopes his hot shooting can help them find stability on the road.

Porzingis Leading Boston’s Charge

Boston (37-12) has won just six of its last 12 games, but Wednesday’s 122-100 victory over the Chicago Bulls was a reminder of the team’s firepower. Porzingis was at the center of it all, tying his career high with eight three-pointers and finishing with a season-best 34 points.

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The big man has been on fire from deep, shooting 54.1% from beyond the arc over the last nine games. That’s a massive leap from the 32.9% he was shooting earlier in January.

“I knew sooner or later I’d start hitting shots, and I’d hit my stride and my rhythm,” Porzingis said. “My routine stays consistent. It was just a matter of time.”

His resurgence is exactly what the Celtics need as they try to reclaim the dominance that saw them open the season as title favorites. Jaylen Brown, who scored 28 points against Chicago, emphasized how Porzingis’ shooting changes the game.

“When he’s shooting the ball like that with confidence, that opens it up for everybody else,” Brown said.

Boston will need Porzingis to stay hot as they face a Pelicans team eager to snap a four-game losing streak.

Pelicans Searching for a Defensive Solution

New Orleans (26-22) has been competitive despite its recent struggles, but defensive lapses have cost them. Their latest loss—a 137-136 thriller against the Dallas Mavericks—saw them match their season-high point total but fall short in crunch time.

CJ McCollum provided a bright spot by breaking the Pelicans’ franchise record for career three-pointers made (629), passing current Celtics guard Jrue Holiday. However, the milestone wasn’t enough to ease the sting of another close defeat.

“I haven’t really thought about it,” McCollum said of the record. “It’s just been a tough season collectively for us as a team. I think I’ll reflect on it more at the end of the season and later on in my career.”

Pelicans coach Willie Green praised his team’s offensive execution but acknowledged that their defense—particularly against three-point shooters—needs to improve.

“That’s elite offense. We’re playing fast. We’re sharing the ball. We’re taking care of the basketball, low turnovers. I’d like to see our threes up a little bit more, but overall really good game offensively.”

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The problem for New Orleans is that they now face the NBA’s most three-point-heavy offense. Boston leads the league in three-point attempts per game (48.6), while the Pelicans rank just 23rd (35.3). The Celtics also shoot at a higher percentage (36.5%) compared to the Pelicans (34.5%).

Green knows that stopping Boston starts with disrupting their outside shooters.

“We’ve got to start the game with the mindset defensively of forcing those guys to put the ball on the floor,” Green said. “They’re going to shoot 50 threes and they shoot it at a high percentage, so we need to force them to do some things that they don’t want to do.”

Previous Meeting and What to Expect

The Celtics edged out the Pelicans in a 120-119 thriller in Boston on January 12, with New Orleans missing a potential game-winning layup in the final seconds. This time around, the Pelicans will try to clean up their defensive rotations and slow down the Celtics’ perimeter shooting.

Boston enters the game with one of the league’s most balanced offenses, and with Porzingis in rhythm, they have even more firepower. The Pelicans, meanwhile, need to bring a sense of urgency on defense if they hope to end their losing streak.

Will the Celtics ride their hot shooting to another road victory, or can the Pelicans step up defensively and get revenge? The battle in New Orleans will provide the answer.