Pelicans at Raptors 10/22/19 - NBA Picks & Predictions

The 2019-2020 NBA season will tip-off on Tuesday night, when the New Orleans Pelicans travel to Scotiabank Arena to take on the Toronto Raptors. New Orleans went through one of the busiest offseason in the league, trading All-Star F Anthony Davis to Los Angeles for Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, and Josh Hart. The Pelicans also received a lottery pick from the Lakers, which they used to draft athletic F/C Jaxson Hayes.

All the buzz around New Orleans is focused on number one overall draft pick Zion Williamson. The freakishly athletic F is unlike any player we have seen in the league, but will miss the first few weeks of the season with a knee injury.

The NBA Champion Toronto Raptors will have an extremely difficult time repeating after losing Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard in free agency to Los Angeles. The core is still strong for the Raptors. Kyle Lowry is one of the best floor generals in the league and F Pascal Siakam has developed into one of the best front court players.

It will be interesting what Toronto GM Masai Ujiri decides to do with this roster. There is enough talent to be one of the better teams in the Eastern Conference, but if things don’t fall right Ujiri could ship out some of his older players.